aaamusic | On 01, Jun 2010

Rage Against The Machine singer Zack de la Rocha has launched a new protest group opposing the state of Arizona‘s controversial new immigration law.

The star and other acts including Sonic Youth, Massive Attack, Kanye West and Serj Tankian say they will not play any gigs in the state until the bill, called SB 1070, is amended.

The bill allows police in Arizona to challenge anybody they suspect of being an illegal immigrant to prove their status officially. Failure to do so will result in arrest.

Named The Sound Strike, the protest group has a petition set up at Thesoundstrike.net.

Writing in on the site, de la Rocha outlined his reasons for forming the group.

“Some of us grew up dealing with racial profiling, but this law (SB 1070) takes it to a whole new low,” he wrote. “If other states follow the direction of the Arizona government, we could be headed towards a pre-civil rights era reality. This unjust law was set into motion by the same Arizona government that refused to acknowledge Martin Luther King Jr day as a national holiday.”

The list of acts who have signed up to support the group already are:

Cypress Hill
Juanes
Conor Oberst
Los Tigres del Norte
Rage Against The Machine
Cafe Tacvba
Micheal Moore
Kanye West
Calle 13
Joe Satriani
Serj Tankian
Rise Against
Ozomatli
Sabertooth Tiger
Massive Attack
One Day as a Lion
Street Sweeper Social Club
Spank Rock
Sonic Youth
Tenacious D

Rage Against The Machine are currently gearing up to play London’s Finsbury Park this Sunday (June 6), to celebrate them beating ‘The X Factor”s Joe McElderry to the Number One position in the UK singles chart last Christmas.