If you're a working class influenced punk rock band, the idea of an anti-labor, anti-labor politician using your music at political rallies may just make you a little bit angry. Enter in the fable of Dropkick Murphys. The Massachusetts band's big hit "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" is now getting played at political events for Wisconsin governor Scott Walker, and Dropkick Murphys are not happy.
Over the weekend, Walker appeared at the Iowa Freedom Summit. Before speaking in front of key members of the Republican Party, Walker walked on stage to "I'm Shipping Up to Boston," perhaps mistaking the song for a Tea Party anthem.
When Dropkick Murphys, who are strongly in support of labor unions, got wind of Walker's use of their music, the band had just one message for him: they want him to stop because the "literally hate" him.
For those who quickly forget political controversies, Wisconsin governor Scott Walker made a huge news splash in 2011 when he proposed Wisconsin Act 10, which impacted the ability for public employees to use collective bargaining. The controversial law was eventually passed by the Republican Wisconsin legislature, much to the chagrin of labor activists - including Dropkick Murphys.
Surprisingly enough, this isn't the first time that "I'm Shipping Up to Boston" has been used by someone in Walker's camp, upsetting the very band that penned the song. As Inquisitr points out, Wisconsion state representative Jeff Fitzgerald used the same song for a speech in 2012, and Dropkick Murphys responded with a strongly worded letter to him and Walker on Facebook.
"The stupidity and irony of this is laughable. A Wisconsin Republican U.S. Senate candidate - and crony of anti-Union Governor Scott Walker - using a Dropkick Murphys song as an intro is like a white supremacist coming out to gangsta rap!" the band wrote. "We stand beside our Union and Labor brothers and sisters and their families in Wisconsin and all over the U.S!"
© 2024 MusicTimes.com All rights reserved. Do not reproduce without permission.