I am officially less than a month away from the start of the semester, and couldn't be more excited. Sure, there's a tinge of nervousness in there, but overall, I'm very much looking forward to beginning classes at Hunter (not to mention FINALLY being able to have an opinion on commuting)!
Most of my July was spent teaching the summer band camp, which is approximately 100% more fun than it sounds. This isn't your typical marching band camp. Our students are thrown together in rock and roll bands and have three weeks to prepare for a gig. Awesome, huh? A sampling of my students' band's set list: Holy Diver, Heart-Shaed Box, Evenflow, Footloose, and Chop Suey. I defy you to find me a summer band camp with a more bad-ass list of tunes. I'll wait.
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That's what I thought. You can't do it.
The kids were amazing, wonderful, impressive, and other such adjectives. They were dedicated and spent a good deal of their free summer vacation time rehearsing and practicing. It was all worth it in the end when they put on a rocking, controversy-free show.
Just kidding!!!!
The kids chose a song called American Idiot, by Green Day, released at the height of George W. Bush's administration (and I stress that the KIDS CHOSE THE SONGS). The song contains two lines that could be considered controversial:
1) "Subliminal mindfuck America"
2) "Maybe I'm the faggot America"
Should I have allowed the kids to even do that song, knowing it might offend listeners? Yes. I am NOT in the business of censoring art in any way, shape, or form. Furthermore, the history of rock and roll's involvement in activism can't and shouldn't be ignored. My politics aside, I have zero problem with the message of any song, unless that song incites violence or bigotry. There is nothing bigoted or violent about "mindfuck", and the word "faggot" in this context is used as a counterpoint to the later line "I'm not a part of a redneck agenda".
That being said, I asked the singer (who is 14) to alter the words, since there would be children in the audience and I would rather not have them running around screaming "mindfuck" or "faggot". Having done the song in the past with kids of that age who had no issue altering the words, I left well enough alone and went on with my rehearsals.
Long story longer, at the gig, the singer did not alter the words, and, from what I understand, two elderly people were upset and complained to the person in charge (not me). Now, here's the kicker. The woman who complained was not upset by "mindfuck", or even the fact that the singer altered the emphasis so it became "mind- FUCK AMERICA" instead of "mindfuck America". The elderly people were upset by the concept of a 14 year old using such language, which, though I disagree, is a completely rational position.
Quote from the sweet elderly woman with whom I spoke: "I understand I'm not a part of this generation, and that these kids have a different worldview than I had and have! I don't have a problem with the message, I just think it's a bit inappropriate for a 14 year old to use such language with kids around!"
She was also smiling when she said that, and thanked me for the great job I did with all the kids. I apologized that she was offended (but NOT for what the singer said), she told me not to worry about it, and we both went on our merry way, elated that the kids had such a great time playing music.
You see, dear readers, structuring an argument in that manner allows for both sides to feel that their opinions are valid. When I saw her waiting for me I fully expected to be blasted again (having already been blasted moments before by the person whose name was attached to the camp), and she completely disarmed me by appreciating where the kids were coming from, even though she disagreed. I thought I was going to need to explain that art shouldn't be censored, that kids have minds and opinions of their own, etc., and she anticipated and answered all of my arguments before I even made them with one sentence of wisdom that only a lifetime of experiences can provide.
What could have turned into a second shouting match instead reinforced what the band camp was all about: kids exploring their own musical ideas, studying the musical ideas of others, and understanding that music, even when it's controversial, provides a way for people to come together and appreciate each others' points of view. I learned just as much from this scenario as the kids learned during the 3 weeks of camp (at least I hope they learned something).
Now all I have to do is understand why no one had a problem with the word "faggot", which, to me, is FAR more offensive than "mindfuck America" or "mind FUCK AMERICA".
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