Annoyed with Pumped Up Kicks? Me too.

A few weeks ago I heard Foster The People's 'Pumped Up Kicks' on the radio, and I thought to myself, "wow, that song just seemed kind of annoying". Then, I didn't think about it again. Recently, I saw Foster The People's performance of the song on Saturday Night Live. I thought, "oh, they seem slightly cooler than I once thought." As I listened on, I noticed how terribly inappropriate the lyrics were...
----------------------
the lyrics, as copied from metrolyrics.com:

Robert's got a quick hand. He's looking 'round the room, he won't tell you his plan. He's got a rolled cigarette, hanging out his mouth he's a cowboy kid. Yeah, he found a six shooter gun. In his dad's closet with a box of fun things, I don't even know what. But he's coming for you, yeah, he's coming for you.

[Chorus x2:]All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun. All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.

Daddy works a long day. He's coming home late, yeah, he's coming home late. And he's bringing me a surprise. His dinner's in the kitchen and it's packed in ice.

I've waited for a long time. Yet the slide of my hand is now a quick pulled trigger, I reason with my cigarette, And say your hair's on fire, you must have lost your wits, yeah.

[Chorus x2:]All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun. All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
Run, run, run, run, ru- ru- ru- run, run, run, ru- ru- ru- run, run, run, ru- ru- ru- run, ru- run, run, run, run. [Whistling]

[Chorus x3:]All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, outrun my gun. All the other kids with the pumped up kicks, you'd better run, better run, faster than my bullet.
-------------------

So, I thought, ok, they must be taking a stand against violence in today's youth; perhaps taking on the heartbreaking tragedy that is 'school shootings'.

I looked up their official video on youtube.com to confirm my new theory, expecting to see something important. Instead, I saw this:



I don't get it. The video is obnoxiously filled with boys who exude privilege and popularity (evidence by their pumped up kicks). The kind of kids that may make a less privileged students feel alone or isolated. Ironic, but sadly not on purpose.

As an American, I do not believe in censorship. So, rock on Foster the People. As a teacher who has to have serious talks with kiddos who glorify songs about guns, I find this song inappropriate. As a human (and a privileged white person) who understands that if this song was made popular by a black or African American artist, parents, teachers, or editorial media outlets would be sounding alarm about the new anthem for sad, isolated, violent students to cling to... I am embarrassed.