The lyrics are a representation of the African American struggle for equality, and the fact that Raheem is choked to death by a police officer at the end of the film only drives home the need for that fight to be even more present in the lives of American citizens. Before this happens, however, there is a striking scene within this film that surrounds Raheem and Sal’s Italian restaurant. Johnson asserts, “Radio Raheem’s Public Enemy not only imposes music upon Sal’s place, it also infuses the popular neighborhood hangout with unwelcome social criticism from a young, urban black male perspective” (26). In the last minutes before his death, Sal shows him contempt for Raheem’s music (and contempt for the African American culture) by smashing the boombox. This displays suppression of African American culture through the silencing of hip-hop
The lyrics are a representation of the African American struggle for equality, and the fact that Raheem is choked to death by a police officer at the end of the film only drives home the need for that fight to be even more present in the lives of American citizens. Before this happens, however, there is a striking scene within this film that surrounds Raheem and Sal’s Italian restaurant. Johnson asserts, “Radio Raheem’s Public Enemy not only imposes music upon Sal’s place, it also infuses the popular neighborhood hangout with unwelcome social criticism from a young, urban black male perspective” (26). In the last minutes before his death, Sal shows him contempt for Raheem’s music (and contempt for the African American culture) by smashing the boombox. This displays suppression of African American culture through the silencing of hip-hop