How Should Art Engage With Contemporary Politics?

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Introduction
Since time immemorial, there has always been a correlation between art and politics. Art and politics have a strong relationship that dates back to ancient Egypt and the founding of civilization. History is full of examples of songs that praise the achievements of nations, leaders, conquests, and dominance in battle. Artists, however, have also used their craft to critique political inequality and unearth social injustices. Songs are used for a plethora of activities including calling to attention contentious issues and rally support for a course. Art engages with American politics to illuminate political agendas and empower citizens to take a stand and safeguard their rights. However, the message should be effectively communicated so that people can relate to their day-to-day lives. In this context, this paper investigates how art should engage with politics using a song from The Hamilton Mixtape, titled “Immigrants (We get the job done)” by K’naan featuring Residente, Riz MC, and Snow Tha Product.
Analysis of how art Engages with Politics
Immigrants (We get the job done) song is about the oppression of immigrants despite being the backbone of the American economy and history. In the introduction, J. Period explains how "...it's astonishing that in a country founded by immigrants, ‘immigrant' has somehow become a wrong word” (Youtube). At this point in the video, a group of immigrants in a ship listens to a radio broadcast about the Senate and the House debate on border laws and likely decides their fate. Pondering the issue further it is more like a moment of de Ja Vu now to treat the whole notion of immigration as a new concept, yet in the real sense there was, and still, there is more that immigrants have done for the nation as opined from the visuals and lyrics of the song.
The visuals complement the lyrics as it shows the hard manual work done by immigrants and the poor living conditions they experience. K’naan speaks of working up to three jobs and sharing a studio apartment with five other people, yet they do not see each other. This shows the extent to which these laborers are occupied by their respective trades and jobs at the expense of their social lives. The scene depicts the situation with multiple beds in a cramped up space. He further explains how immigrants risk their lives to get into America in search of freedom and opportunity (Youtube). The overall notion has always been that the U.S is a land of opportunities and anyone who sets foot there stands a great chance of prosperity. The next scene shows people working in a clothes factory and one of them is sewing the American flag. It is an allegorical emblem that subtly asserts that America was sewn together by the hands of immigrants. Quite a great piece of symbolism in this scene.
Another critical element in the song is deduced. It explicitly depicts the immigration situation in America. This includes the dangerous sea expeditions and how people are forcing their way across the border, and doing the hard work that runs the country. Also, it describes racism in the American social structure and how it’s worsening the situation for immigrants. In the second vers...