The day Rage Against the Machine descended on the New York Stock Exchange

Posted On June 1, 2025June 1, 2025

It’s almost a meme at this point how many people are upset by the fact that Rage Against The Machine “went all political”. Y’know, Rage Against the Machine. They who thanked Black Panther Party founder Huey P Newton and IRA hunger striker Bobby Sands in the liner notes of their debut album. An album whose cover depicted the moment Thích Quảng Đức immolated himself in 1963 to protest the persecution of Buddhists by the South Vietnamese government. Or, y’know, whose biggest song is built around the words “some of those who work forces are the same that burn crosses”.

The idea that someone can engage with the music of Rage Against the Machine at any point and not believe it was political is ludicrous. The idea that someone can believe that they weren’t, and then got political, is even more unbelievable. Granted, unbelievable is the word here because best-case scenario, it’s trolls looking for a reaction, especially when the famously online Tom Morello is so willing to give them. The worst case scenario is that it’s bots, programmed to spit venom at anyone and everyone.

Let’s give these posts the benefit of the doubt. Let’s say they’re coming from people who vibed with the “fuck you I won’t do what you tell me” song and were so comfortable in their bubble that they had no desire or ability to look any deeper than that. If you can miss the political commentary in the lyrics of ‘Killing in the Name’, you can miss basically any and all lyrical content.

That’s not implausible; Zach De La Rocha’s lyrics do tend to fly by in the heat of the moment. However, you’d also have to basically ignore all their music videos, too, especially the brilliant effort put together for their 1999 single ‘Sleep Now In The Fire’. Or perhaps these witless fucks would also think that a rock band shutting down the New York Stock Exchange was a completely apolitical act.

How did Rage Against the Machine make this video?

The idea came from a collaboration with fellow icon of 1990s political activism Michael Moore, director of documentaries like Bowling for Columbine and Fahrenheit 9/11. His work may not have aged with the grace of Rage Against The Machine (a strange sentence to type, but work with me here), but at the dawn of the 21st century, they went together like a dream.

Half the video was to be a parodic take on Who Wants To Be A Millionaire, with Moore’s subtle satirical bite coming from renaming the show Who Wants To Be Filthy F#&%ing Rich. Jonathan Swift could never. The other half, though, was what really got people’s attention. Moore, after an intense back-and-forth with New York City officials, got the band permission to film a performance live on the steps of New York Federal Hall – the home of the New York Stock Exchange and the centre of American financial power.

New York’s then-mayor Rudy Giuliani unwittingly gave the video its perfect beginning by saying in a press conference earlier that week that “Rage Against The Machine shall not play on Wall Street”. Smash cut to Rage rocking out on the steps of the iconic building. From that moment on, the shoot, depending on which way you look at it, either went very wrong or very, very right. You see, the band were to be contained to one spot at the top of the building’s steps. If they went any further, they’d break the agreement made with the city council.

After a few mimed takes, Moore started encouraging the band to walk down the steps, which is when the cops started getting antsy. In an interview with Yahoo, Tom Morello talked about the moment the band started doing this. He said, “A police sergeant comes up to me and says, ‘You’ve got to get back up on the steps.’ I remember what Mike said – no matter what happens, to keep playing – so this clearly falls under the auspices of that.”

When the band wouldn’t stop moving towards the fans camped out at the foot of the building, the cops finally sprang into action. Of course, they didn’t go near the band; they instead cuffed Moore and started leading him to a cop car. As he was being bundled into the car, he shouted to the assembled crowd, “Take the New York Stock Exchange!” Spark, meet fuse.

The band’s fans, led by the band themselves, launched themselves up the steps towards the Federal Hall. Morello is typically charming about it in the Yahoo interview, saying, “We rush over there. I go through the door, and there’s a frumpy dude and a security guy in a jacket, and I’m like, “Hey, I’m here to take the New York Stock Exchange. Is that a right or a left?” And he hits the panic button, and the riot police come, and the riot doors slam shut.”

It was reported that for just under 20 minutes, rock ‘n’ roll had managed to stop the New York Stock Exchange. I know this all seems very quaint to read about now. We’re all a little bit beyond believing that a rock band can stand effectively against anything at the moment. However, it’s still a testament to the power that direct action can have against systems of oppression. Is it a little cringe? Sure. So’s believing in anything, so you might as well embrace it.

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