Not long after a major health scare landed him in the ICU, Lil Wayne is back in headlines for his music. The rapper recently filmed a video for his political track, "God Bless Amerika," which boasts bold lyrics like: “My country, tis of thee/ Sweet land of kill them all and let them die/ So God bless America, this so Godless America."
Over the weekend, the video, which shows the rapper dancing on top of the American flag, ignited anger as it spread across the Internet. Veteran of Foreign Wars spokesperson Randi Law told the NY Daily News that walking on the American flag is “disrespectful and shouldn’t be done."
“You’re clearly not supposed to walk on the American flag and he’s doing that in front of a group of people,” Law said. “I would think the respect of the flag needs to be upheld and clearly it’s not.”
This morning, Wayne addressed the backlash with a statement via Twitter:
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The apology, however, it not likely to assuage those who are offended -- especially since Wayne looks down at the flag several times during the performance:
If the official video shows Wayne standing over the Stars and Stripes, VFW may petition the rapper for an apology.
Update: Lil Wayne issued the following statement, via Facbeook:
"It was never my intention to desecrate the flag of the United States of America. I was shooting a video for a song off my album entitled "God Bless Amerika". The clip that surfaced on the Internet was a camera trick clip that revealed behind the American Flag was the Hoods of America. In the final edit of the video you will see the flag fall to reveal whats behind it but will never see it on the ground. In most people eyes including my own who were raised in that environment, the Hood is the only America they know and the only America I knew growing up. I was fortunate from my God giving talents to escape the Hood and see the other beautiful places this country has to offer but most people who are born in that environment don't get that chance. That's their view of their America. That was Dwayne M Carter from Hollygrove New Orleans view of America. That's who I'm speaking for in this song."
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