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John Fogerty Says America Still Has Citizens Who ‘Are More Equal Than Others’

In an interview with USA Today, John Fogerty talks about the impacts of his songs. Today he is using his platform to implore politicians to correct the vast wealth gaps in America. Fogerty is hopeful that the wealth gap can be fixed and the country can no longer have people who are more than citizens.

In particular, his long-time band, Creedence Clearwater Revival (CCR), created a song called “Fortunate Son.” Although an incredibly popular song, the message behind it is even more powerful.

USA Today reports that Fogerty is still baffled that Trump decided to use a song that is directed at him.

“That song lives in my heart,” Fogerty says in the interview. “As an ongoing struggle in culture – not just the President or war, but the whole concept of class struggle.”

Fogerty continues, explaining just how harmful the wealth gap is to society. “It’s certainly prevalent here in America, which we think of as the land of the free and democracy. Which is true, but we still have some who are more equal than others, if you know what I mean.” 

Context of CCR’s ‘Fortunate Son’

This famous song by Fogerty and his band is an era-defining protest against the Vietnam War.

Although Fogerty served in the military after being drafted, he takes issue with the class divides in America. The opening lyrics to his song express that sentiment.

“Some folks are born, made to wave the flag / Ooh, they’re red, white and blue / And when the band plays ‘Hail to the Chief’ / Ooh, they point the cannon at you.”

Fogerty and CCR’s “Fortunate Son,” stands as a protest against the Vietnam War and those fortunate enough to draft dodge.

This song talks about how many millions of Americans were forced into serving the country. More importantly, the song is about how those wealthy citizens could simply ignore the draft. And those who could not afford to just ignore their draft card had to serve in the war.

John Fogerty Wages War on America’s Wealth Gap

Fogerty posted a video to Twitter of his granddaughter giving a short lesson about the song.

https://twitter.com/John_Fogerty/status/1321620206318309376

Fogerty posted this video to Twitter after learning that Donald Trump used his songs at rallies. Consequently, Fogerty issued a cease and desist in October against Donald Trump’s now-failed reelection campaign.

As he explains, those who are wealthier than others certainly have more power. Fogerty urges American politicians to fix that problem so that “Fortunate Son” can be a relic of the past. He hopes that the song can no longer be relevant in today’s culture. All that said though, there is still a lot of work to be done yet.