John Lennon- Liz Eisler
Throughout the majority of his career, John Lennon was a target of the highest levels of American politics based on his musical influence to fight against authority. Although Lennon had numerous followers worldwide, government officials, reporters, and many others questioned his political protests. For instance, in the movie The US vs. John Lennon New York times reporter, Gloria Emerson, questions Lennon by bolding stating, “you don’t [actually] think you’ve saved a single life� [by writing and singing songs about peace? While I wouldn’t necessarily agree that Lennon saved the lives of people around the world, I do argue that he influenced numerous people and showed them a glimpse of their responsibilities as United States citizens. Through his powerful and radical lyrics, Lennon was able to persuade people to speak out against the government and stand up for what they believe in. According to Street, “music has symbolic force, it deploys the power of language to create visions, articulate ideals and form bonds� through political expression (254). John Lennon used his music to “navigate between the fears of the outsiders and the opportunism of the insiders� through representation of his political ideas (Street, 244).