A California bill restricting the use of rap lyrics and other creative works as evidence in criminal proceedings has passed both the state Senate and House of Representatives unanimously and could soon be signed by Governor Gavin Newsom. I have.
invoiceIt was introduced in February by Democratic Rep. Reginald Jones Sawyer, who represents South Los Angeles, after Atlanta rappers Young Thug and Gunna were indicted on gang-related charges. I use male lyrics when I do.
However, California’s measures apply more broadly to all creative works, including other types of music, poetry, film, dance, performance art, visual arts, and novels.
“What you write could end up being used against you, which could stifle creative expression,” Jones Sawyer said in an interview Wednesday. ultimately boils down to the question of First Amendment rights.
“This is America,” he said. “You should be able to have that creativity.”
Newsom has until Sept. 30 to sign the bill into law. If he does not sign or reject the bill by that date, the bill automatically becomes law. The law will then come into force on January 1, 2023, Jones-Sawyer said.
When asked if Mr Newsom planned to sign the bill into law, his office said it could not comment on the pending legislation. ‘, he said.
Although the bill’s origins were to prevent rap star lyrics from being weaponized, the bill loosely defines “creative expression” to include “shapes, sounds, words, movements, or symbols.” ing.
A court must assess whether such works can be included as evidence. “The potential for injecting racial bias into litigation should be considered,” the bill said.
“People were going to jail just because of their looks,” Jones Sawyer said. “We weren’t trying to corner people. We were just trying to keep prejudice, especially racial prejudice against African Americans, from being used against them in court.”
The bill would require a pretrial decision on evidence without the presence of a jury.
For decades, even though the rapper’s music went mainstream, prosecutors have used the rapper’s lyrics against them.The Reno Man just watch him die?) or writers like Brett Easton Ellis, who wrote “American Psycho.”
According to Jones-Sawyer’s office, although the lyrics were not used as evidence, they were debated before jurors and in some cases “poisoned the well” allowing prejudice to enter court. Also, in country music, “Murder Ballad” Only the lyrics of the rap artists were chosen.
Charis E. Kubrin, a professor of criminology, law, and sociology at the University of California, Irvine, who has extensively studied the use of rap lyrics in criminal cases, explains how prosecutors used lyrics written by defendants in court. is a rap.
According to her, the practice essentially treated the lyrics as “no more than an autobiographical account and a denial of rap’s status as an art form.” . “This is bigger than rap,” she said.
Most recently, indictments against Young Thug and Gunna brought the tactic into national attention. Two men, who have claimed to be innocent, have been identified as members of a criminal street gang charged with violent crimes, including murder and attempted armed robbery.
Young Thug, whose real name is Jeffrey Williams, co-wrote the Grammy Award-winning “This is America” with Childish Gambino and is one of the most influential artists in the Atlanta hip-hop scene.
In November, two lawmakers from New York similar bill This prevents the lyrics from being used as evidence in criminal cases unless there is a “factual relationship between the creative expression and the facts of the case.” It passed the Senate in May.
In July, US Representatives Hank Johnson (Georgia) and Jamal Bowman (New York), both Democrats, introduced federal legislation. Restoration of Art Protection Lawthey said they would protect artists from “illegal use of lyrics against them.”
California’s bill is backed by several other music organizations and activist groups, including Black Music Action Coalition California, Public Defenders Association, and Smart Justice California, which advocates for criminal justice reform.
In a statement of support from June, the Black Music Action Coalition, an advocacy group that fights systemic racism in the music business, said prosecutors almost exclusively weaponized rapper lyrics against people of color. said he did
“Creative expression should not be used as evidence of bad character,” the organization said, adding that claims that the themes expressed in the art indicate that the person may be violent or dishonest. It was simply a mistake,” he claimed.
Harvey Mason Jr., chief executive of the Recording Academy, which runs the Grammy Awards, said the bill is intended to protect not just rappers, but artists and other creatives in all genres of music. rice field.
“It’s bigger than an individual case,” Mason said. “I never think someone’s art should be used against them.”