Stop Calling ‘This Is America’ Genius

This past weekend was a big one for Donald Glover. He hosted Saturday Night Live, performed under his musical alias Childish Gambino, and pretty much proved that he can do anything.

Glover also dropped visuals for his newest song, This is America.

These visuals were so simultaneously powerful and painful, it calls the watcher to do some unpacking of what they really do think about the current climate of our nation.

It is artistic and quite a creative expression of the need for gun control, but, as artistically as this video is, I personally do not think it was genius.

Just because Glover shows execution style and mass murder style shootings in a video doesn’t make it genius. It makes it violent, yes. It makes it provocative, sure.

However, it also makes a statement. A bold one. It is putting the seemingly everyday issue of gun violence in the faces of all, whether you are a second amendment supporter or protester. It says “Hey, we have an issue here, and no amount of dancing around (which Glover literally does…