Anthropology Now

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Race and Racialized Experiences in Childish

Gambino's “This is America”

Kimberly Eison Simmons

To cite this article: Kimberly Eison Simmons (2018) Race and Racialized Experiences
in Childish Gambino's “This is America”, Anthropology Now, 10:2, 112-115, DOI:
10.1080/19428200.2018.1494462

To link to this article: https://doi.org/10.1080/19428200.2018.1494462

Published online: 24 Sep 2018.

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books and arts
Race and Racialized
Experiences in
Childish Gambino’s
“This is America”
Kimberly Eison Simmons
“T his is America” is a powerful rep-
resentation of race in the United
States.1 In this widely viewed music video,
Childish Gambino (Donald Glover) explores
gun violence, black oppression, joy and pain
in a complex and fast-moving sequence of
events that left this reviewer with mixed
emotions as well as questions. The music
video is a self-reflexive exploration of race
and racialized situations in the United States
with a spotlight on gun violence and police
brutality. The symbolism is strong; the black
body is front and center as a shirtless Gam-
bino moves through the scenes bringing at-
tention to his body through his dance moves
and contorted gestures. In this way, he uses
his body to offer social commentary on the
policing of black bodies — black men in par-
ticular — focusing on police violence, the
sense of entrapment and the need to escape.
This film review focuses on some of the key
images and representations in the video be-
ginning with the warehouse setting and con-
siders the different situations involving guns,
violence, the police and the community. The
video begins with a view of an empty chair
and a guitar in a large stark warehouse. As
the music plays, a tall black man (Calvin The
112  anthropology
Anthropology Now, 10:112–115, 2018  •  Copyright © Taylor & Francis Group, LLC
ISSN: 1942-8200 print / 1949-2901 online  • https://doi.org/10.1080/19428200.2018.1494462
Second) sits down and starts playing the gui-
tar. The South African–inspired music at the
beginning of the song is upbeat and joyful;
this musical style is interwoven throughout
the song and video as a way to introduce
new scenes. As the music plays and the cam-
era shifts, a shirtless Childish Gambino enters
the frame. As he turns and faces the camera,
he starts to dance, flex and contort his face,
drawing attention to his upper body — his
Black body and natural hair. As he moves
behind the man in the chair, he pulls a gun
from the back of his pants and shoots him
execution-style. “This is America” is spoken
for the first time in the song.
While the execution is shocking, what fol-
lows is one of the first social commentaries in
the video — the man’s body is dragged away
while the gun is carefully handed to someone
and wrapped in a red cloth for protection as
“this is America” is heard again in the song.
Gambino seems to suggest that there is more
regard for weapons than for victims of gun
violence. This scene ends, and dancers wear-
ing school uniforms move into the frame. It is
clear that the social commentary surround-
ing “This is America” is just beginning.
At this point in the video, Gambino starts
his critique of policing and police violence
while simultaneously supporting the right to
bear arms. As Gambino dances, he speaks
these words2:
This is America
Don’t catch you slippin’ up
Look at how I’m livin’ now
Police be trippin’ now
Yeah, this is America
Guns in my area
I got the strap
I gotta carry ‘em
Volume 10  •  Number 2  •  September 2018
 “How I’m living” and “Guns in my area”
speak to communities of color, lack of re-
sources, policing and violence. “I got the
strap … I gotta carry ‘em” is a statement in
support of self-defense and the right to carry
a weapon. “Police be trippin’ now” points
to the ways in which police are ever-present
and confrontational and violent in some situ-
ations.
While the video tells a powerful story, it
is through the lens of African-American per-
formance that viewers come to contemplate
these complex issues. African-American mu-
sic and dance, combined with South African
music and dance styles, captures the joy and
pain of the African-American experience.
While the camera is focused on the perfor-
mance, a lot is going on in the background.
It is difficult to focus on or even notice every-
thing — which is the point. No matter what is
taking place in the background, the focus re-
turns to Gambino in the foreground. It is not
that the situations surrounding Gambino are
less significant. His performance is attention
grabbing and becomes a distraction even
though it points to significant issues facing
African-Americans and other groups in the
United States. Everything in the foreground
and background is central to the “This is
America” story. From people running, peo-
ple chasing each other, the person riding the
white horse, the person falling from the beam
onto the car below and the people filming
what is taking place on their phones, to the
police cars and other cars moving in and
out, this part of the video moves quickly and
reflects the rapid pace of news and events
flooding television and social media.
The white horse has different symbolism.
In urban contexts, “riding the white horse”
Kimberly Eison Simmons Race in “This Is America”  113
refers to heroin. Today, the white horse could
represent the current opioid crisis and deaths
resulting from overdose. The running and
chasing scenes represent the business of life,
rushing to get from place to place, running
away from something or someone (i.e., po-
lice), while the person falling from the beam
is hardly noticeable. This seems to suggest
that suicides go unnoticed or do not receive
much attention in society. The people sitting
on the beam above the floor, looking at their
phones, accurately portray the present-day
obsession with cell phones, social media and
recording events as they happen.
All of these competing scenes take place in
the warehouse. It is striking because a ware-
house represents confinement — the limited
and bounded space that African-Americans
find themselves in when they are racially
profiled and approached by the police and
where they are sometimes racially read as
criminals, thugs and a threat to society. The
warehouse is the societal structure that con-
tains everything. It is within this space, this
structure, that people are running, living and
being — exercising their agency. All of these
movements and actions during the video
scream “we are here,” and in some ways that
is what a shirtless Gambino represents — hu-
manity. His body cannot be ignored; he must
be seen, not in a sexual or sexualized way
as with other sexualized images of black and
Latino men in the media and film, but in a
raw, naked, “here I am” human kind of way.
Even though the warehouse is a confined
space, it is large and has different doors and
passageways. Gambino is adept at mov-
ing with ease through the warehouse. Later
in the video, someone who resembles the
man who was executed is playing the gui-

Throughout the video, Gambino
navigates the space to highlight
some of the most horrific and
heartbreaking events that have
taken place in recent years.
tar as Gambino dances on top of a car in a
James Brown–like fashion. By this point in
the video, several scenes have passed, leav-
ing lingering thoughts and questions. His-
torically, African-Americans have been “the
entertainers” providing comic relief and
theatrical escape during turbulent times in
the United States. After the Great Migration,
black entertainers performed in northern cit-
ies such as New York and Chicago against
the backdrop of racial inequality and racial
tensions. Their performances provided an es-
cape from the everyday realities much like
Gambino’s performance is an escape from all
of the things taking place in the background.
W.E.B. DuBois’ idea of double consciousness
is applicable here and captured in Gambino’s
dance performance and facial expressions.
At different times, Gambino’s face reflects a
sense of joy, pain, anger, frustration, fear and
bewilderment. He glides to the music, is on
step with the beat, and at other times, he has
a hobbled walk where he stumbles. On one
hand, these facial expressions and move-
ments represent double consciousness and
duality of being black in America with the re-
alities of racism (feeling conflicted, wearing
a mask, navigating different terrains fraught
with competing feelings and emotions). On
the other hand, Gambino’s crippled dance
114  anthropology
hints at the notion of Jim Crow, the racialized
image and the dance (shuffling and gliding
of the feet). And of course, Jim Crow brings
to mind segregation, black oppression and
struggle.
Throughout the video, Gambino navigates
the space to highlight some of the most hor-
rific and heartbreaking events that have taken
place in recent years. From school shootings
(represented by the dancers wearing school
uniforms), to the Charleston massacre (rep-
resented by the church choir and shooting
scene), to the police presence, gun violence,
racial violence and black oppression, Gam-
bino tells a powerful story on the current
state of America. At the end, Gambino high-
lights the horror surrounding racial profiling
and policing of black men as he runs away
from a mob with a look of terror on his face
with the lyrics:
You just a Black man in this world
You just a barcode, ayy
You just a Black man in this world
Overall, I think Gambino offers a powerful
critique of the current state of America in this
video, and it is very effective. The images are
intense and represent some of the most re-
cent headlines, current events and American
cultural symbols and values. Importantly, the
spotlight is not on what is good about the
United States but rather on what is bad — the
things that make people feel uncomfortable,
vulnerable, fearful and disconnected. Many
of the issues in the video involve taking sides
— from gun control to drug intervention pro-
grams and policies. These are difficult con-
versations and divisive issues all across the
United States. Because of how the issues are
Volume 10  •  Number 2  •  September 2018
presented in the video, they become front
and center and provoke different thoughts
and feelings/emotions.
This type of critique –—focusing on what
is “bad” or “wrong” — has the potential to
spark conversation and dialogue about the
issues with regard to what is detrimental in
society. That has happened with this video.
Gambino performed the song when he hosted
SNL on May 5, and the video was released
at the same time. Soon after the video’s re-
lease, several talk shows had segments on the
video’s content and meaning, often focusing
on the violence and competing scenes in the
foreground and background.
In many ways, “This is America” highlights
the evils plaguing society and has prompted
other versions. Nicole Arbour focuses on
women’s/feminist issues and experiences
while Nigerian artist Folarin “Falz” Falana
focuses on Nigeria in “This is Nigeria.” Ar-
bour’s version was highly criticized because
of the sense that she rendered invisible the is-
sues and circumstances that Gambino made
visible in “This is America.” “This is Nigeria,”
on the other hand, has been well received as
it mirrors some of the social commentary and
raises parallel issues to those highlighted in
“This is America.” These two versions high-
light what is “wrong” in their particular gen-
dered and national/cultural contexts circling
back to Gambino’s spotlight on societal ills.
Interestingly, in interviews, Gambino refuses
to offer explanation of the video, stressing
that the viewers should interpret its social/
cultural significance.
Without doubt, the video is having a ma-
jor impact. Conversations are taking place,
and people are thinking about the issues.
Contemplating the issues in a meaningful
Kimberly Eison Simmons Race in “This Is America”  115
way could bring about change. With self-
reflection and monitoring, implementing
policy (i.e., gun control), cultural sensitiv-
ity, understanding and awareness (regard-
ing implicit bias), and community-partnered
policing, change could occur. Is this what
Gambino intended? Will actions follow the
conversations about gun violence, racial ter-
ror and black oppression? Time will tell. This
is America.
Notes
1. While America often refers to “The Ameri-
cas” in anthropological and historical works,
Gambino uses it to refer to the United States. For
the purpose of the review, I will use both depend-
ing on the context to refer to the United States.
2. https://www.lyrics.com//lyric/35045438/
Childish+Gambino/This+Is+America Written by:
Donald Glover, Ludwig Goransson. Lyrics © Ko-
balt Music Publishing Ltd., Warner/Chappell Mu-
sic, Inc. Lyrics Licensed & Provided by LyricFind.
Kimberly Eison Simmons is associate professor of
anthropology and African American studies at the
University of South Carolina (USC). She previously
served as an associate dean in the South Carolina
Honors College and director of the Latin Ameri-
can studies program at USC. She is the author of
Reconstructing Racial Identity and the African Past
in the Dominican Republic (University Press of
Florida, 2009) and co-editor of Afrodescendants,
Identity, and the Struggle for Development in the
Americas (Michigan State University Press, 2012).
She is working on a book project focusing on the
natural hair movement in the Dominican Repub-
lic and beyond.