Fun Fact: Every group member of "Rise Against" is a vegetarian. Image by plantsanimals.org
By Whitney Shurtleff
Rise Against rose again when they released their newest album Endgame in March, 2011. With what was predicted to be their best album so far, this collection of songs sure has the impact factor. Though all the songs are notable, the third track on this album really stood out to me. Make It Stop (September's Children) is a to the point, very touching song, about the hateful epidemic referred to as homophobia. The band doesn't sugar coat it or beat around the bush with lyrics like “and too much blood has flown from the wrists of children shamed for those they chose to kiss” or “make this stop, make this end, this life chose me, I'm not lost in sin.” Lyrics that can make any person stop and think, if even for only a second.
The premise behind this song is to call attention to the fact that this is something real that is happening every day. Towards the end of the song, what I believe to be the climax, over the wooah-ing chorus you hear a call out of the names and ages of five boys who committed suicide. As you google the names of the boys, you realize they connect in the way that they are all based on incidents involving sexual discrimination. The first boy mentioned, Tyler Clementi, took his life September 22, 2010 because some classmates leaked a video of him kissing another boy. Harrison Brown took his life three days after on the 25th. These boys shouldn't have been shamed so far to wanting to kill themselves. It just goes to show that with constant bullying, people reach a breaking point.
Though this song doesn't make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, the feeling you get inside is much greater. It's nice to know that there is still raw music out there that doesn't involve any auto tune or Soulja Boy. I sleep easier at night knowing that not all the music in the world today is meaningless. But, what good is music if it's not being heard? Don't just brush past this song like you do the other songs in your library, stop and think to yourself, how can you help? How can you prevent this from happening at our school?
Rise Against rose again when they released their newest album Endgame in March, 2011. With what was predicted to be their best album so far, this collection of songs sure has the impact factor. Though all the songs are notable, the third track on this album really stood out to me. Make It Stop (September's Children) is a to the point, very touching song, about the hateful epidemic referred to as homophobia. The band doesn't sugar coat it or beat around the bush with lyrics like “and too much blood has flown from the wrists of children shamed for those they chose to kiss” or “make this stop, make this end, this life chose me, I'm not lost in sin.” Lyrics that can make any person stop and think, if even for only a second.
The premise behind this song is to call attention to the fact that this is something real that is happening every day. Towards the end of the song, what I believe to be the climax, over the wooah-ing chorus you hear a call out of the names and ages of five boys who committed suicide. As you google the names of the boys, you realize they connect in the way that they are all based on incidents involving sexual discrimination. The first boy mentioned, Tyler Clementi, took his life September 22, 2010 because some classmates leaked a video of him kissing another boy. Harrison Brown took his life three days after on the 25th. These boys shouldn't have been shamed so far to wanting to kill themselves. It just goes to show that with constant bullying, people reach a breaking point.
Though this song doesn't make you feel all warm and fuzzy inside, the feeling you get inside is much greater. It's nice to know that there is still raw music out there that doesn't involve any auto tune or Soulja Boy. I sleep easier at night knowing that not all the music in the world today is meaningless. But, what good is music if it's not being heard? Don't just brush past this song like you do the other songs in your library, stop and think to yourself, how can you help? How can you prevent this from happening at our school?
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