Controversy in Madonna's "Like a Prayer"

Madonna : "Like a Prayer"

 Controversy can be defined as a disputation concerning a matter of opinion; in the case of Madonna's “Like a Prayer“, controversy is brought up by several themes shown throughout the entirety of the music video.
Controversial topics can be raised by things that can go against the “norm”, can make people uncomfortable, can express different ideologies, can be offensive, can be up-to date with current issues, can be scandalous, and can provoke a negative reaction.

In Madonna's music video “Like a Prayer” from 1989, she seems to address issues of racism and rape, which weren't positively picked up by the public. The Vatican condemned the video, and families and religious groups protested against the broadcast of the video. The music video even boycotted Pepsi, who used it in one of their commercials, and therefore canceled their contract with Madonna. She was seen as the original rebellious artist.

03:30 - "Like a Prayer"

The music video immediately introduces Ku Klux Klan-style cross burning, which did not transfer well to a wide audience, as it a) negatively reinforced the churches' image, and b) re-introduced a few issues the KKK had raised. The group used the burning of a Latin cross as a display of symbolism and an attempt at intimidation in around 1915, often accompanied by prayer, hymns and religious symbolism. 

00:10 - "Like a Prayer"

Through “The Clansman” by Dixon and “The Birth of a Nation” by Griffith, the symbol of a burning cross has been associated with the group ever since, and is therefore negatively reflected. Due to the KKK being a rather large issue in the 1980's (such as the shooting of four elderly black women in 1980, and the lynching of Michael Donald in 1981), Madonna, who was seemingly promoting the negative ideologies that the KKK reflects, was seen as provocative as the audience was unsure how to react to these actions and were made uncomfortable. Whether it was necessary for Madonna to use this symbolism within her music video is debatable, as the video reflects issues of racism and incorporates the church (which also depicts a black Jesus, pastor and folk); it may have spoken out against the group and/or it's ideologies. Whatever the causes were for these symbols to be incorporated in the music video are irrelevant, they were deemed as controversial because of Madonna seemingly portraying a completely different ideology.

 In her music video, she also represents other religious references such as stigmata, which is a term used by members of Christian faith to describe marks, sores or pain which correlate to the crucifixion wounds which Jesus Christ has. Madonna portrays herself as a Stigmatic in the video, as she is shown to have cuts on her hands similar to those of Jesus. 

02:20 - "Like a Prayer"

Ivan Illich, a Christian theologian created the theory that stigmata is raised by the desire to associate oneself with the suffering Jesus Christ went through. This can be seen as a controversial topic as these themes could be viewed as an attempt to provoke a reaction from the audience. By using stigmata within her video, Madonna is concerned with the ideologies that religion raises. Whilst this is not too endearing, the fact that she associates herself with a black figure of Jesus could be provocative and cause issues due to interracial contact with, and acceptance of a darker-skinned Jesus. 

03:00 - "Like a Prayer"

Because the music video portrays Madonna witnessing a murder/an act of rape to a white girl by white “supremacists”, and a black man coming to help the poor woman, Madonna knows that the saviour is black. Therefore, Jesus (the Messiah and saviour) is presented as being a black man in the video, which some people may not have agreed with.

 Through slight hints at intimacy with black Jesus, Madonna raises the controversial issue of being up-to date, and also portrays a scandalous image. In the 1980's a huge setback was caused for African Americans within the U.S, which is where the music video seemed to have taken place, due to Ronald Reagen's presidency whom seemed to ignore most of their issues and interests. An array of conservative judges at court often ended and shut down programmes which were designed to help against racism, and therefore divided the nation racially once more. 

04:24 - "Like a Prayer"

05:18 - "Like a Prayer"

This is why, in the music video, the police targeted the black man and arrested him without further questions, whereas the actual offenders got away unharmed. In her music video Madonna attempted to bring together both racial cultures, and seemed to have no interest towards their skin colour. She is portrayed celebrating the equality of race, and attempts to put a better light on black people who are trapped in an unequal society through portraying Jesus as a black man, portraying the saviour of the woman to be black, and shown as standing in as a witness and bailing the black man out of prison rightfully instead of embracing racism. 

She attempts to positively represent black people within her music video and attempts to turn opinions around.

 Overall, Madonna addresses racism in a satirical, and also in a slightly ironic way. Whether all of the symbols within her music video were right to use is unsure, however by being different and controversial she attempts to speak out to those negatively influenced by racism and addresses these issues by standing out. Causing an outrage to happen may have helped bring the message across easier.