People of the Sun

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"People Of The Sun"

Single by Rage Against the Machine
from the album Evil Empire
Released	1996
Format	CD, 7", 12"
Genre	Alternative rock
Length	2 min 30 s
Producer(s)	Brendan O'Brien, Rage Against the Machine
Rage Against the Machine singles chronology
"Bulls on Parade" (1996)	"People of the Sun" (1996)	"Down Rodeo" (1996)

"People of the Sun" was a single released by the American band Rage Against the Machine. The song was about the Zapatista revolution, and was featured on the LP Evil Empire, the CD & DVD Live at the Grand Olympic Auditorium, the DVD Rage Against the Machine and the People of Sun (EP). People of the Sun also had its own music video.

The song has a wide variety of messages, most notably the destruction of the Aztec empire by the Spanish, demonstrated in the lines:

"Since 1516 minds attacked and overseen
Now crawl amidst the ruins of this empty dream
Wit their borders and boots on top of us
Pullin' knobs on the floor of their toxic metropolis
So how you gonna get what you need ta get?
Tha gut eaters, blood drenched get offensive like Tet
Tha fifth sun sets get back reclaim
Tha spirit of Cuauhtemoc alive an' untamed
Now face tha funk now blastin' out ya speaker, on tha one Maya, Mexica
That vulture came ta try and steal ya name
But now you found a gun, yeah this is for the people of the sun."

There is also reference to the Zoot Suit Riots of Los Angeles in 1943.

"Troops strippin' zoots, shots of red mist,
Sailors blood on tha deck, come sista resist
From tha era of terror check this photo lens,
Now tha city of angels does the ethnic cleanse"