Kanye West has joined a musical boycott of Arizona’s new immigration law, which has caused a firestorm of controversy.
Zach de la Rocha of Rage Against The Machine has sparked the protest and the rock rapper furnished a list of musicians that have supported the movement.
West has been joined by Cypress Hill, Conor Oberest, Sonic Youth, Massive Attack, Ozomatli, Rise Against, Pitbull and Tenacious D.
De la Rocha said their boycott of the state was comparable to the legendary boycott of the Montgomery Bus system in the 60’s, which sparked the Civil Rights Movement.
“When Rosa Parks refused to give up her seat, they arrested her. As a result, people got together and said we are not going to ride the bus until they change the law. It was this courageous action that sparked the Montgomery bus boycott,” a statement read. “What if we got together, signed a collective letter saying, “we’re not going to ride the bus”, saying we are not going to comply. We are not going to play in Arizona. We are going to boycott Arizona?!”
Many groups, organizations and even cities have opted or proposed boycotting Arizona for the immigration law. The city of Los Angeles has approved an economic boycott of Arizona, which will result in about $8 million in lost revenue from contracts. Another $58 million could be affected in other contracts and investments, many of which lie in air travel.
Opponents of the immigration law claim mandate promotes racial profiling and is inherently unconstitutional. It lets officer of the law make personal judgements whether or not there is a “reasonable suspicion” that the person is in the United States illegally.
The law takes affect at the end of July.