This congresswoman is making hip-hop political

First-term Rep. Sydney Kamlager-Dove (D-Calif.) says she’s a child of hip-hop.

Now she’s set to drop a resolution that remixes how we think about the arc of the genre's influence on American culture and politics.

Kamlager-Dove says her resolution, which she is unveiling on Wednesday, but allowed The Recast an exclusive review of a draft of the bill, goes far beyond recognizing Aug. 11 as the 50th anniversary of hip-hop. “Hip-hop,” the bill declares, “has evolved as a platform to advocate for social, political, and economic needs of all people, including environmental justice, education, healthcare, and voting rights.” And as such, Kamlager-Dove is hoping that the resolution will underscore the significance of Black American contributions to one of America’s greatest exports.

She hopes the resolution can be another tool to push back on what she says is a Republican effort to double down on culture wars — that specifically targets Black history — ahead of next year's elections.

Framing the bill in that way, however, may make it hard to win much-needed GOP support. Before Kamlager-Dove was sworn in, her predecessor, former Rep. Karen Bass — now the mayor of Los Angeles — gave her some advice: pursue issues where she could work in bipartisan fashion.

But Kamlager-Dove thinks the bill will inspire some Republicans to reach across the aisle.

“I'm sure a lot of these Republicans have some rap songs on their Spotify playlists,” she tells The Recast.