American Culture + Free Speech
Yes, Your Speech is Banned, But It’s Not Because You’re Conservative
The issue is hatred, not conservatism
What’s going on?
Although the song is over 50 years old, Marvin Gaye’s seminal classic, ‘What’s Going On’ has been on my mind all week. In 1971, Marvin Gaye asked, “What’s going on?” as a critique of what he and many others considered “a world in despair.”
Gaye had been inspired by social ills committed in the United States. Citing the 1965 Watts Riot as a turning point in his life and opposing America’s involvement in the war in Vietnam, Gaye is quoted as having asked himself, “With the world exploding around me, how am I supposed to keep singing love songs?”
The song, ‘What’s Going On’ and the album by the same name explore themes of racism, drug abuse, environmental degradation, poverty, unjust governmental policies, and the Vietnam War. Gaye depicts all of these social ills as being the product of hate. Gaye declares in the song that “only love can conquer hate.”
The common refrain throughout the song is:
You know we’ve got to find a way
To bring some lovin’ here today
