Fight the Power: How Hip Hop Changed the World

(dramatic music) - A lot of people, especially young white kids, very quickly learned that unfortunately a lot of the music was based on what was happening in the United States.

(dramatic music continues) - [Interviewer] Have you ever been shot at?

- Yeah.

- [Interviewer] What happened?

- Nothing, I got away.

- [Guest Speaker] People wanted to hear these stories because they're authentic.

(dramatic music continues) - It's like a tour guide through the streets.

I don't have to ride down Crenshaw to find out what's really going on.

I could buy me a gangster tape.

(dramatic music continues) - But the white establishment didn't like it 'cause you had these articulate, angry black men exposing some of the ugly truths of the United States, and that was intimidating, dangerous, and frightening to a lot of people because now these guys do have a voice.

Now they have the microphone.

- In the nineties, you know, a lot of things were escalated, and things were getting worse because we had more police brutality, a lot of gang activity at the same time as far as a lot of drive-bys.

(siren wailing) (dramatic music continues) - One of the things that is important to understand is crime as a whole, and particularly violent crime, had been increasing for 20 years.

(siren wailing) (walkie talkie crackling) - [Civilian] He got his gun out!

- [Reporter] Anger and tension exploding here, as in so many cities, a feeling the crime is out of control.

- Watching brothers get killed, I mean, it can take a toll on your life.

It can take a toll on your mind.

(dramatic music continues) - Urban communities, as African-American communities, as Latino communities, are under assault, is they're under siege.

- What this is, is this is a search warrant.

- [Leah] They are being ravaged by drugs and by crime, and by poverty and inequality.

(dog barking)