While the Federal government is poised to file a lawsuit against Arizona’s harsh new law that takes immigration law into its own hands and makes it a crime to be undocumented in the state, music artists and television personalities continue to protest the law and put pressure on the state to reconsider the law that has caused so much controversy for being unconstitutional and racist. Last week we brought you DJ Spooky and Chuck D’s version of the Public Enemy song, “By the Time I Get to Arizona.” This week, a multicultural group of 13 rappers from Arizona have brought out a music video featuring their diverse voices in protest of a law that they call “heartless and “racist.”

Directed by Carlos Berber, the video features artists DJ John Blaze, Tajji Sharp, Yung Face, Mr. Miranda, Ocean, Da’aron Anthony, Atllas, Chino D, Nyhtee, Pennywise, Rich Rico, Da Beast, and Queen YoNasDa. Beginning with a montage of images of people protesting the law, the video is a call to action that begins with the words, “My brothers and sisters, it’s time to rise, Arizona…the revolution, will be televised.” It warns, “You thought we were just going to sit back and say nothing, well guess what…You push us, we push back…They say you need strength in numbers, well I’ve got some friends with me, and we’ve got something to say.”

Queen YoNasDa, a Native-African American Hip-Hop artist who led the “Hip-Hop 4 Haiti” fundraiser said that the new music video was a tool with which the diverse Hip-Hop community could take a stand against the harsh new law. Leading the collaboration, she said:

“I requested the help of Arizona’s finest hip-hop artists to remake Public Enemy’s “By the Time I get to Arizona” to show the world that Arizona’s hip-hop community will not stand for this injustice and will unite our talent to demonstrate our activist roles and responsibility. All you need is one mic...”

Are you ready to join in?

Check out how The Daily show contributed to last week’s protest against SB1070 after the jump.

In addition to the inspiring 8 minute hip-hop video that calls for a revolution against Arizona’s anti-immigrant law, The Daily Show took on SB1070 for the second time. In honor of Cinco de Mayo, Jon Stewart sent his correspondent Jason Jones to a bar in New York city to see if he could round up people that looked “reasonably suspicious” of being undocumented. Jason Jones asked a number of people in the bar what they thought constituted “reasonable suspicion,” and the results were almost as ridiculous as the law itself.

To see what he discovered, skip ahead to 10.20 in the episode.

May 10, 2010 by ishita
Tags: Arizona, Chino D, cinco de mayo, Da Beast, Da’aron Anthony, DJ John Blaze, hip-hop, immigration, Jason Jones, jon stewart, Mr. Miranda, music video, Ocean, Queen YoNasDa, racist, Restore Fairness, Rich Rico, SB1070, Tajji Sharp, The Daily Show with Jon Stewart, Yung Face