Description of Contents
Make It Stop (September's Children)" is a single from punk rock band Rise Against's album, Endgame produced on May 30, 2011.The front man Tim McIlrath said that it was written inspired of the five teen suicides in the month of September 2010, who were bullied for being homosexual. The song deals about how people are treated from homophobic bullying and feeling so tormented that they feel there's no place for them in the future and that killing themselves is a better option. It was written by Tim’s nephew, who wrote it about his best friend. His friend had killed himself a week before it was written. The song's music video follows the lives of three teenagers who are bullied at school for being gay. It also shows scenes of the band playing in a high school gymnasium. It comes to a point that the teenagers can no longer stand the torment anymore that they have thoughts of killing themselves, but before they do they think about what impact they can have on society in their futures and have a purpose in life to live for. The video ends with scenes of the three kids being bullied turning out to become very successful people. The video was shot at Rolling Meadows High School in Rolling Meadows, Illinois, the same high school where the band's frontman, Tim McIlrath, attended.
Review
The song lyrics and video are a realistic and unapologetic look at what thousands of gay teenagers, or perceived gay teenagers, go through everyday in the halls of their high schools. They are bullied, they are mocked, and they contemplate ending it all. This is a fact, as the world learned in September 2010 alone, when five teenagers committed suicide after being bullied for being gay — and the teens in these five tragic cases are now known as “September’s Children.” end of “Make It Stop (September’s Children).”The video follows a day in the life of three high school students — who are either gay or perceived to be gay — on a typical school day. A girl walks up to a locker and sees that there are stickers with the words “Dyke,” “LESBO,” and “DIE FAG” stuck to her locker. Her backpack is then taken and other students laugh and mock her. Another scene depicts a young male being tormented by several students in a bathroom while one films it on her cell phone camera. The third case has another male eating by himself in the cafeteria. When another student comes to sit with him, he has a split second of joy — that is until the student spits in his food. The moment when his incredible happiness turns to fear and embarrassment will stick with the viewer for a long time. It’s truly horrifying to see how cruel some people can be. More students come over to spit in his food, until he runs out of the cafeteria crying .While these scenes of bullying are shown, other scenes of Rise Against performing the song in a darkened gymnasium are intercut. The band performs the poignant song and the fact that they are performing in the empty gymnasium seems to put an even more serious tone to it.. The video continues with the three-bullied teens each making the decision to commit suicide. One puts a handgun to her head. One makes a noose and climbs on top of a stool. One gets on top of an overpass, and readies himself to jump. As the three teens cry and contemplate ending it all, McIlrath slowly says the names and ages of the five teenagers who committed suicide last September adding to the already dramatic scene. All three decide against suicide as the video flash forwards to showing one as a member of Congress, one as an award-winning artist, and one getting married to her same-sex partner. This video is incredibly compelling and truly makes a statement. Hopefully the teenagers who are going through similar instances in their lives will see it, and will eventually understand that life gets better after high school. The song and its video promote acceptance of gays and lesbians and the idea that suicide is never a solution. The video shows bullying and teens contemplating suicide with a noose and a gun. But in the end, they see the light at the end of the tunnel and choose life. Behind heavy punk guitar riffs, the lyrics of "Make It Stop" paint a picture that's both unsettling and hopeful. "What God would damn a heart? And what God drove us apart?... Born free, but still they hate. Born me, no I can't change... And too much blood has flown from the wrists, of the children shamed for those they chose to kiss. Who will rise to stop the blood?" The point of the song and video are clear: Bullying is never OK, and only we can make the hate stop. It's a powerful way to get a dialogue going with kids and show the next generation that every life is worth living and loving. The song is very catchy and easy to get stuck in head.
