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The N Word pt 1/8 (The Documentary)
- Thread starter MASTERBAKER
- Start date
They have been for awhile (at least since the early 1990s), but I notice (with recent events) a change into neutral.
Maybe some forward progress will be possible, in the future.
Based upon what objective standards, studies, empirical data ???
For each of those statements, what are the objective standards, studies, empirical data that you are relying upon ???
Based on the death and destruction black people bring upon themselves. Or is death and destruction subjective?
What's to explain? Are there not enough threads on this board documenting health, wealth, income, access to capital, employment, education, intra-group crime, and self-image issues as it applies to black Americans?
The board should pretend like another Trayvon verdict just came down and care about black issues for another week.
Well, thank you for letting us know by the statement above that you co-sign and accept as true and accurate everything said in every thread in this forum "documenting health, wealth, income, access to capital, employment, education, intra-group crime, and self-image issues as <s>it</s> they appl<s>ies</s>y to black Americans."
T.O., you've been vindicated !!!
Whatever helps you to avoid the subjects.
Which one is you and which one is me?
Which one are you and which one is me?
At least you admit it. First step in a twelve step process.
Is your new thing just to repeat everything I've ever said to you back to me?
I know, for you, objective means whatever the Jews/whites say as they try to legitimize it with their legal fictions (corporations, foundations, government studies, think tanks, State-run media and other bullshit factories).
My statements are based on where rap was, and other popular entertainment, and the rise of the black stars in Hollywood (Morgan Freeman, Spike Lee, Denzel Washington), and the Cosby Show/Different World, and Malcolm X.
They represented the very end of the positive era, a culmination of productive awareness, or A HIGH period.
Around 1994, you had the emergence of Samuel L. Jackson, Will Smith, Tupac/Biggie, gangsta rap, the emergence of the N-word in every other rap song with West Coast rappers, the end of Cosby/Different World, which I call the beginning of the coon-tastic period or THE UNRAVELING. This was also the period when the Drug War, Clinton's welfare policies just devastated the black community.
It's funny how black people seemed to do so well under Republican Presidents and suffer so greatly under Clinton.
It started slow and just got progressively worse with every rap song now becoming bitches and hoes, where before you had all kinds of rap (comedy, conscious, party, braggadocio, love, hippie, militant).
The spread of the N-word is pervasive, as if slavery and lynchings never existed. It is ignorance defined. The black community seemed to have completely lost its way from 1994-2013.
After 20 years of this, I think there is an AWAKENING about how stupid that whole period was. That was my generation and I would say we were LOST in stupidity... a LOST generation chasing after white symbols of success and celebrating our ignorance and stupidity. But, the older generations certainly provided no direction... the older generation was like a SILENT generation.
These younger kids will realize the stupidity of the older generations and will have an AWAKENING. They will reject, as failures, the behavior and antics of my generation and be much more activist, a lot less selfish/self-centered, and more involved in the communities, than prior generations (mainly because they have no choice). The stupidity of the N-word will be buried (and hopefully for good this time).
I think it's good to focus on the consumption preferences of the youth to develop a general idea of the future of any group. I also think you're right when talking about the trend towards ignorance. I was coming of age in the late '80s/early '90s, and I would say that the era could be described as one where NWA and Public Enemy could both exist and be popular without contradiction. I think the trend definitely goes downhill as the lack of diversity you cited is embraced by rappers and rap fans. I think it says something when non-n word raps became a niche product. It definitely still exists, but it became unnecessarily difficult to find.
Kids nowadays also have the unique dynamic where they listen to rap with their parents, who also listened to rap and even the same artist. It's hard to identify right and wrong when you're doing wrong with the authority figures in your life.
I don't see that getting better. It's cool that you do, but I don't see the use of the n-word and grown men with sagging pants becoming less common in the future. If that's how the future of the black race see themselves, then I don't see a lot of gains coming from them.
NY case puts N-word use among blacks on trial
NY case puts N-word use among blacks on trial
Associated Press LARRY NEUMEISTER 2 hours ago
NEW YORK (AP) — In a case that gave a legal airing to the debate over use of the N-word among blacks, a federal jury has rejected a black manager's argument that it was a term of love and endearment when he aimed it at black employee.
Jurors were weighing punitive damages Tuesday after finding last week that the manager's four-minute rant was hostile and discriminatory, and awarding $250,000 in compensatory damages.
The case against Rob Carmona and the employment agency he founded, STRIVE East Harlem, hinged on the what some see as a complex double standard surrounding the word: It's a degrading slur when uttered by whites but can be used at times with impunity among blacks.
But 38-year-old Brandi Johnson told jurors that being black didn't make it any less hurtful when Carmona repeatedly targeted her with the slur during a March 2012 tirade about inappropriate workplace attire and unprofessional behavior.
Johnson, who taped the remarks after her complaints about his verbal abuse were disregarded, said she fled to the restroom and cried for 45 minutes.
"I was offended. I was hurt. I felt degraded. I felt disrespected. I was embarrassed," Johnson testified.
In closing arguments, Johnson's attorney Marjorie M. Sharpe said Carmona's use of the word was intended to offend "and any evidence that defendants put forth to the contrary is simply ridiculous."
"When you use the word ****** to an African-American, no matter how many alternative definitions that you may try to substitute with the word ******, that is no different than calling a Hispanic by the worst possible word you can call a Hispanic, calling a homosexual male the worst possible word that you can call a homosexual male," Sharpe told jurors.
But defense lawyers said the 61-year-old Carmona, a black man of Puerto Rican descent, had a much different experience with the word. Raised by a single mother in a New York City public housing project, he became addicted to heroin in his teens and broke it with the help of drug counselors who employed tough love and tough language.
Carmona went on to earn a master's degree from Columbia University before co-founding STRIVE in the 1980s. Now, most of STRIVE's employees are black women, defense attorney Diane Krebs told jurors in her opening statement.
"And Mr. Carmona is himself black, as you yourselves can see," Krebs said.
In his testimony, Carmona defended his use of the word, saying he used it with Johnson to convey that she was "too emotional, wrapped up in her, at least the negative aspects of human nature."
Then he explained that the word has "multiple contexts" in the black and Latino communities, sometimes indicating anger, sometimes love.
Carmona said he might put his arm around a longtime friend in the company of another and say: "This is my ****** for 30 years."
"That means my boy, I love him, or whatever," he said.
He was asked if he meant to indicate love when he called Johnson the word.
"Yes, I did," he responded.
The controversy is a blemish on STRIVE, which has been heralded for helping people with troubled backgrounds get into the workforce. Its employment model, which was described in a CBS' "60 Minutes" piece as "part boot camp, part group therapy," claims to have helped nearly 50,000 people find work since 1984.
Sharpe told jurors that STRIVE's tough-love program cannot excuse Carmona's behavior.
"Well, if calling a person a ****** and subjecting them to a hostile work environment is part of STRIVE's tough love, then STRIVE needs to be reminded that this type of behavior is illegal and cannot be tolerated," she said.
http://news.yahoo.com/ny-case-puts-n-word-among-blacks-trial-071543769.html
NY case puts N-word use among blacks on trial
Associated Press LARRY NEUMEISTER 2 hours ago
NEW YORK (AP) — In a case that gave a legal airing to the debate over use of the N-word among blacks, a federal jury has rejected a black manager's argument that it was a term of love and endearment when he aimed it at black employee.
Jurors were weighing punitive damages Tuesday after finding last week that the manager's four-minute rant was hostile and discriminatory, and awarding $250,000 in compensatory damages.
The case against Rob Carmona and the employment agency he founded, STRIVE East Harlem, hinged on the what some see as a complex double standard surrounding the word: It's a degrading slur when uttered by whites but can be used at times with impunity among blacks.
But 38-year-old Brandi Johnson told jurors that being black didn't make it any less hurtful when Carmona repeatedly targeted her with the slur during a March 2012 tirade about inappropriate workplace attire and unprofessional behavior.
Johnson, who taped the remarks after her complaints about his verbal abuse were disregarded, said she fled to the restroom and cried for 45 minutes.
"I was offended. I was hurt. I felt degraded. I felt disrespected. I was embarrassed," Johnson testified.
In closing arguments, Johnson's attorney Marjorie M. Sharpe said Carmona's use of the word was intended to offend "and any evidence that defendants put forth to the contrary is simply ridiculous."
"When you use the word ****** to an African-American, no matter how many alternative definitions that you may try to substitute with the word ******, that is no different than calling a Hispanic by the worst possible word you can call a Hispanic, calling a homosexual male the worst possible word that you can call a homosexual male," Sharpe told jurors.
But defense lawyers said the 61-year-old Carmona, a black man of Puerto Rican descent, had a much different experience with the word. Raised by a single mother in a New York City public housing project, he became addicted to heroin in his teens and broke it with the help of drug counselors who employed tough love and tough language.
Carmona went on to earn a master's degree from Columbia University before co-founding STRIVE in the 1980s. Now, most of STRIVE's employees are black women, defense attorney Diane Krebs told jurors in her opening statement.
"And Mr. Carmona is himself black, as you yourselves can see," Krebs said.
In his testimony, Carmona defended his use of the word, saying he used it with Johnson to convey that she was "too emotional, wrapped up in her, at least the negative aspects of human nature."
Then he explained that the word has "multiple contexts" in the black and Latino communities, sometimes indicating anger, sometimes love.
Carmona said he might put his arm around a longtime friend in the company of another and say: "This is my ****** for 30 years."
"That means my boy, I love him, or whatever," he said.
He was asked if he meant to indicate love when he called Johnson the word.
"Yes, I did," he responded.
The controversy is a blemish on STRIVE, which has been heralded for helping people with troubled backgrounds get into the workforce. Its employment model, which was described in a CBS' "60 Minutes" piece as "part boot camp, part group therapy," claims to have helped nearly 50,000 people find work since 1984.
Sharpe told jurors that STRIVE's tough-love program cannot excuse Carmona's behavior.
"Well, if calling a person a ****** and subjecting them to a hostile work environment is part of STRIVE's tough love, then STRIVE needs to be reminded that this type of behavior is illegal and cannot be tolerated," she said.
http://news.yahoo.com/ny-case-puts-n-word-among-blacks-trial-071543769.html
$30K in damages in N-word use among blacks case
$30K in damages in N-word use among blacks case
By LARRY NEUMEISTER | Associated Press
15 hrs ago
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York jury has awarded $30,000 in punitive damages to a black woman who sued her black ex-boss after he unleashed an N-word tirade at her last year.
Brandi Johnson said she was happy after the Manhattan federal jury concluded Tuesday that Rob Carmona must pay $25,000 and his organization Strive East Harlem must pay another $5,000.
Those awards are in addition to $250,000 in compensatory damages that the jury awarded Johnson last week. Carmona wiped his eyes with a towel and appeared emotional as he testified Tuesday. He said he learned his lesson that he must communicate differently than in the past.
Johnson's defense attorney accused him of crying "ghost tears" and urged jurors to award additional damages to show him that "calling somebody the N-word is a very serious thing."
http://news.yahoo.com/30k-damages-n-word-among-blacks-case-204832974.html
$30K in damages in N-word use among blacks case
By LARRY NEUMEISTER | Associated Press
15 hrs ago
NEW YORK (AP) — A New York jury has awarded $30,000 in punitive damages to a black woman who sued her black ex-boss after he unleashed an N-word tirade at her last year.
Brandi Johnson said she was happy after the Manhattan federal jury concluded Tuesday that Rob Carmona must pay $25,000 and his organization Strive East Harlem must pay another $5,000.
Those awards are in addition to $250,000 in compensatory damages that the jury awarded Johnson last week. Carmona wiped his eyes with a towel and appeared emotional as he testified Tuesday. He said he learned his lesson that he must communicate differently than in the past.
Johnson's defense attorney accused him of crying "ghost tears" and urged jurors to award additional damages to show him that "calling somebody the N-word is a very serious thing."
http://news.yahoo.com/30k-damages-n-word-among-blacks-case-204832974.html
Bury all use of this racial epithet
Bury all use of this racial epithet
Six years after the NAACP staged the symbolic burial of a racial epithet, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated
Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist
Sunday, December 1, 2013 at 3:03 AM
The N-word again. Of course.
Six years after the NAACP staged its symbolic burial, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated.
In just the last few weeks we’ve had the following: Richie Incognito, a white player for the Miami Dolphins, tags a black teammate, Jonathan Martin, with that epithet and black players defend the white guy because he’s an “honorary” brother; Matt Barnes of the Los Angeles Clippers tweets the word in criticizing his teammates and says people who have a problem with that should “get used to it;” Trent Williams, a black player for Washington’s professional football team (speaking of racial slurs) is accused of using the word against Roy Ellison, a black referee, a charge Williams denies.
Then it gets worse. The mushrooming controversies prompt two African-American NBA analysts, Charles Barkley and Michael Wilbon, to defend their usage of the N-word. And it’s not just the jockocracy, either. Last week in The New York Times, celebrated social critic Ta-Nehisi Coates, who is African-American, made the old “context” argument: i.e., it’s OK if we say it, but it’s not OK if you say it. In defending the N-word as an “in-word” Coates noted how some women will jokingly call other women by a misogynistic term or some gay people will laughingly use a homophobic slur in talking with or about one another.
Some of us would say that’s not such a good look, either. Some of us think there is cause for dismay when women, gay people or any put-upon people adopt the terminology of their oppressors as self-definition.
But the larger point is this: so what? Like it or not, the N-word is not like the words used to denigrate women and gay people or, for that matter, Italian, Irish or Jewish people, simply because the experiences those peoples endured in this country do not compare with those of African Americans.
The N-word is unique. It was present at the act of mass kidnap that created “black America,” it drove the ship to get here, signed the contracts at flesh auctions on Southern ports as mother was torn from child, love from love and self from self. It had a front-row center seat for the acts of blood, rape, castration, exclusion and psychological destruction by which the created people were kept down and in their place. The whole weight of our history dictates that word cannot be used except as an expression of contempt for African Americans. The only difference when a Matt Barnes or Ta-Nehisi Coates uses it is that the contempt is black on black.
“Context?” That argument grows more threadbare every time it’s made. It may also be growing less effective in cowing white people of goodwill. As reporter Richard Prince recently noted in his online “Journal-isms” column, a number of white journalists have refused to be silenced on this. That includes Mike Wise of The Washington Post, who wrote a brave piece confronting those who would deny him the right to be concerned because of his race.
“That doesn’t work for me,” he said. “I deserve a seat at this table. This is about the world my 3-year-old is going to live in.” Indeed, it is about the world all our children will inherit. African Americans are not walled off from that world, cannot commit this sin of self-denigration in our little corner of existence and command everyone else to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t matter.
Our stubborn insistence otherwise speaks volumes. As does the fact that some so determinedly defend the indefensible. How can we require others to respect us when this word suggests we don’t respect ourselves?
So burying the N-word, well-intentioned as it was, turns out to have been fruitless. Something in some of us seems to need this word. And to agree with it.
Let us find a way to bury that instead.The N-word again. Of course.
Six years after the NAACP staged its symbolic burial, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated.
In just the last few weeks we’ve had the following: Richie Incognito, a white player for the Miami Dolphins, tags a black teammate, Jonathan Martin, with that epithet and black players defend the white guy because he’s an “honorary” brother; Matt Barnes of the Los Angeles Clippers tweets the word in criticizing his teammates and says people who have a problem with that should “get used to it;” Trent Williams, a black player for Washington’s professional football team (speaking of racial slurs) is accused of using the word against Roy Ellison, a black referee, a charge Williams denies.
Then it gets worse. The mushrooming controversies prompt two African-American NBA analysts, Charles Barkley and Michael Wilbon, to defend their usage of the N-word. And it’s not just the jockocracy, either. Last week in The New York Times, celebrated social critic Ta-Nehisi Coates, who is African-American, made the old “context” argument: i.e., it’s OK if we say it, but it’s not OK if you say it. In defending the N-word as an “in-word” Coates noted how some women will jokingly call other women by a misogynistic term or some gay people will laughingly use a homophobic slur in talking with or about one another.
Some of us would say that’s not such a good look, either. Some of us think there is cause for dismay when women, gay people or any put-upon people adopt the terminology of their oppressors as self-definition.
But the larger point is this: so what? Like it or not, the N-word is not like the words used to denigrate women and gay people or, for that matter, Italian, Irish or Jewish people, simply because the experiences those peoples endured in this country do not compare with those of African Americans.
The N-word is unique. It was present at the act of mass kidnap that created “black America,” it drove the ship to get here, signed the contracts at flesh auctions on Southern ports as mother was torn from child, love from love and self from self. It had a front-row center seat for the acts of blood, rape, castration, exclusion and psychological destruction by which the created people were kept down and in their place. The whole weight of our history dictates that word cannot be used except as an expression of contempt for African Americans. The only difference when a Matt Barnes or Ta-Nehisi Coates uses it is that the contempt is black on black.
“Context?” That argument grows more threadbare every time it’s made. It may also be growing less effective in cowing white people of goodwill. As reporter Richard Prince recently noted in his online “Journal-isms” column, a number of white journalists have refused to be silenced on this. That includes Mike Wise of The Washington Post, who wrote a brave piece confronting those who would deny him the right to be concerned because of his race.
“That doesn’t work for me,” he said. “I deserve a seat at this table. This is about the world my 3-year-old is going to live in.” Indeed, it is about the world all our children will inherit. African Americans are not walled off from that world, cannot commit this sin of self-denigration in our little corner of existence and command everyone else to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t matter.
Our stubborn insistence otherwise speaks volumes. As does the fact that some so determinedly defend the indefensible. How can we require others to respect us when this word suggests we don’t respect ourselves?
So burying the N-word, well-intentioned as it was, turns out to have been fruitless. Something in some of us seems to need this word. And to agree with it.
Let us find a way to bury that instead.
http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2022364207_leonardpittscolumnnword01xml.html
Bury all use of this racial epithet
Six years after the NAACP staged the symbolic burial of a racial epithet, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated
Leonard Pitts Jr. / Syndicated columnist
Sunday, December 1, 2013 at 3:03 AM
The N-word again. Of course.
Six years after the NAACP staged its symbolic burial, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated.
In just the last few weeks we’ve had the following: Richie Incognito, a white player for the Miami Dolphins, tags a black teammate, Jonathan Martin, with that epithet and black players defend the white guy because he’s an “honorary” brother; Matt Barnes of the Los Angeles Clippers tweets the word in criticizing his teammates and says people who have a problem with that should “get used to it;” Trent Williams, a black player for Washington’s professional football team (speaking of racial slurs) is accused of using the word against Roy Ellison, a black referee, a charge Williams denies.
Then it gets worse. The mushrooming controversies prompt two African-American NBA analysts, Charles Barkley and Michael Wilbon, to defend their usage of the N-word. And it’s not just the jockocracy, either. Last week in The New York Times, celebrated social critic Ta-Nehisi Coates, who is African-American, made the old “context” argument: i.e., it’s OK if we say it, but it’s not OK if you say it. In defending the N-word as an “in-word” Coates noted how some women will jokingly call other women by a misogynistic term or some gay people will laughingly use a homophobic slur in talking with or about one another.
Some of us would say that’s not such a good look, either. Some of us think there is cause for dismay when women, gay people or any put-upon people adopt the terminology of their oppressors as self-definition.
But the larger point is this: so what? Like it or not, the N-word is not like the words used to denigrate women and gay people or, for that matter, Italian, Irish or Jewish people, simply because the experiences those peoples endured in this country do not compare with those of African Americans.
The N-word is unique. It was present at the act of mass kidnap that created “black America,” it drove the ship to get here, signed the contracts at flesh auctions on Southern ports as mother was torn from child, love from love and self from self. It had a front-row center seat for the acts of blood, rape, castration, exclusion and psychological destruction by which the created people were kept down and in their place. The whole weight of our history dictates that word cannot be used except as an expression of contempt for African Americans. The only difference when a Matt Barnes or Ta-Nehisi Coates uses it is that the contempt is black on black.
“Context?” That argument grows more threadbare every time it’s made. It may also be growing less effective in cowing white people of goodwill. As reporter Richard Prince recently noted in his online “Journal-isms” column, a number of white journalists have refused to be silenced on this. That includes Mike Wise of The Washington Post, who wrote a brave piece confronting those who would deny him the right to be concerned because of his race.
“That doesn’t work for me,” he said. “I deserve a seat at this table. This is about the world my 3-year-old is going to live in.” Indeed, it is about the world all our children will inherit. African Americans are not walled off from that world, cannot commit this sin of self-denigration in our little corner of existence and command everyone else to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t matter.
Our stubborn insistence otherwise speaks volumes. As does the fact that some so determinedly defend the indefensible. How can we require others to respect us when this word suggests we don’t respect ourselves?
So burying the N-word, well-intentioned as it was, turns out to have been fruitless. Something in some of us seems to need this word. And to agree with it.
Let us find a way to bury that instead.The N-word again. Of course.
Six years after the NAACP staged its symbolic burial, that word has proved rumors of its demise greatly exaggerated.
In just the last few weeks we’ve had the following: Richie Incognito, a white player for the Miami Dolphins, tags a black teammate, Jonathan Martin, with that epithet and black players defend the white guy because he’s an “honorary” brother; Matt Barnes of the Los Angeles Clippers tweets the word in criticizing his teammates and says people who have a problem with that should “get used to it;” Trent Williams, a black player for Washington’s professional football team (speaking of racial slurs) is accused of using the word against Roy Ellison, a black referee, a charge Williams denies.
Then it gets worse. The mushrooming controversies prompt two African-American NBA analysts, Charles Barkley and Michael Wilbon, to defend their usage of the N-word. And it’s not just the jockocracy, either. Last week in The New York Times, celebrated social critic Ta-Nehisi Coates, who is African-American, made the old “context” argument: i.e., it’s OK if we say it, but it’s not OK if you say it. In defending the N-word as an “in-word” Coates noted how some women will jokingly call other women by a misogynistic term or some gay people will laughingly use a homophobic slur in talking with or about one another.
Some of us would say that’s not such a good look, either. Some of us think there is cause for dismay when women, gay people or any put-upon people adopt the terminology of their oppressors as self-definition.
But the larger point is this: so what? Like it or not, the N-word is not like the words used to denigrate women and gay people or, for that matter, Italian, Irish or Jewish people, simply because the experiences those peoples endured in this country do not compare with those of African Americans.
The N-word is unique. It was present at the act of mass kidnap that created “black America,” it drove the ship to get here, signed the contracts at flesh auctions on Southern ports as mother was torn from child, love from love and self from self. It had a front-row center seat for the acts of blood, rape, castration, exclusion and psychological destruction by which the created people were kept down and in their place. The whole weight of our history dictates that word cannot be used except as an expression of contempt for African Americans. The only difference when a Matt Barnes or Ta-Nehisi Coates uses it is that the contempt is black on black.
“Context?” That argument grows more threadbare every time it’s made. It may also be growing less effective in cowing white people of goodwill. As reporter Richard Prince recently noted in his online “Journal-isms” column, a number of white journalists have refused to be silenced on this. That includes Mike Wise of The Washington Post, who wrote a brave piece confronting those who would deny him the right to be concerned because of his race.
“That doesn’t work for me,” he said. “I deserve a seat at this table. This is about the world my 3-year-old is going to live in.” Indeed, it is about the world all our children will inherit. African Americans are not walled off from that world, cannot commit this sin of self-denigration in our little corner of existence and command everyone else to ignore it or pretend it doesn’t matter.
Our stubborn insistence otherwise speaks volumes. As does the fact that some so determinedly defend the indefensible. How can we require others to respect us when this word suggests we don’t respect ourselves?
So burying the N-word, well-intentioned as it was, turns out to have been fruitless. Something in some of us seems to need this word. And to agree with it.
Let us find a way to bury that instead.
http://seattletimes.com/html/opinion/2022364207_leonardpittscolumnnword01xml.html
Rap disrespect of black icons raises concerns
Rap disrespect of black icons raises concerns
By JESSE WASHINGTON | Associated Press
33 mins ago
Malcolm X and rap music have always fit together like a needle in the groove, connected by struggle, strength and defiance. But three recent episodes involving the use or misuse of Malcolm and other black icons have raised the question: Has rap lost touch with black history?
Chart-topping rapstress Nikki Minaj provoked widespread outrage with an Instagram post featuring one of black history's most poignant images: Malcolm X peering out the window of his home, rifle in hand, trying to defend his wife and children from firebombs while under surveillance by federal agents. Superimposed on the photo: the title of Minaj's new song, which denigrates certain black men and repeats the N-word 42 times.
That came after Minaj's mentor Lil Wayne recorded a verse last year using the civil rights martyr Emmett Till in a sexual metaphor, and the hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons posted a Harriet Tubman "sex tape" video on his comedy channel.
What is happening to mainstream rap music, which was launched by Simmons and is now ruled by the likes of Minaj and Wayne?
"I don't want to say today's rappers are not educated about black history, but they don't seem as aware as rap generations before them," said Jermaine Hall, editor-in-chief of Vibe, the hip-hop magazine and website.
While previous generations had to struggle with the racism and neglect of the 1970s or the crack epidemic of the 1980s, Hall said, today's young people have not faced the same type of racial struggle — "They're sort of getting further and further away from the civil rights movement."
"In the '80s, whether it was KRS-One, Public Enemy, or the Native Tongues, that entire movement, it was very in tune with black history," Hall said. "They knew everything about Malcolm, about Martin, about Rosa Parks. Now, the new rappers just aren't as in tune."
Indeed, Minaj issued a statement expressing disbelief at the uproar and apologizing to Malcolm's family "if the meaning of the photo was misconstrued." Wayne wrote to the Till family to "acknowledge your hurt, as well as the letter you sent to me via your attorneys." Simmons was the only one to say, "I am sincerely sorry."
The apologies did not change much for Pierre Bennu, a filmmaker and artist who said Malcolm X's life was dedicated to advocating for the humanity of black people, while Minaj's song was simply dehumanizing.
When he saw Minaj's manipulation, Bennu said, "I felt punched in the gut."
The episode inspired him to post a mash-up video (http://bit.ly/1fpoFYB) laying Minaj's song over the infamous 1941 Walter Lantz cartoon "Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat," which depicts a town of lazy black people hypnotized by a seductive washerwoman.
Various mainstream rap artists seem reluctant to defend Minaj and Wayne; The Associated Press sought out five, but none returned calls for comment.
Jasiri X, a rapper whose music focuses on black empowerment and current events, said many of today's mainstream rappers use images of revolutionary black icons to promote an anti-establishment image.
"All the while, they're being funded and pushed by major corporations," he said.
"I see Nikki and other artists, whether Kanye or Jay-Z, adopting these revolutionary images or using a clip or saying their name, but never practice the principles which these revolutionaries gave their lives for," Jasiri said.
It was not always so.
Hip-hop began in the early 1970s as an alternative to gang activity. Before the music was recorded, founding fathers like DJ Afrika Bambaataa — whose slogan was "peace, love, unity and having fun" — would play Malcolm X's voice over instrumental break beats.
"Not only did it sound funky but it helped raise our consciousness," Davey wrote on his website.
Davey attended many early rap concerts at Harlem's Audubon Ballroom, where Malcolm was assassinated. As the music gained steam, X was constantly honored on wax. KRS-One duplicated Malcolm's gun-in-the-window pose on the cover of his 1988 classic album, "By Any Means Necessary." In 1991, Tupac rhymed on "Words of Wisdom": "No Malcolm X in my history text, why is that? / Cause he tried to educate and liberate all blacks."
Malcolm's voice and image appeared on so many records and videos, "many would remark that he was an emcee," Davey wrote.
Tubman also is a longtime rap staple, mentioned by everyone from Ice Cube ("She helped me run like Harriet Tubman") to Pharoahe Monch ("A railroad to underground like Harriet Tubman"). Till, too, has been mentioned in songs such as Kanye's breakthrough 2003 single "Through The Wire."
But today's rappers reflect our money-obsessed society, said Bakari Kitwana, whose Rap Sessions organization just moderated a series of community dialogues between the civil rights and hip-hop generations.
"We see a lot of things going on with our young people, and we don't feel like we are teaching them values that can compete with the way the value of money is ingrained in our culture," Kitwana said. "Everything is just focused on money. If you can get money, whatever else you're doing doesn't matter."
"It's reached a crisis point," he said. "I came up in the '70s and '80s, and greed has always been present, but I don't think I've ever seen it like it is now."
He was echoed by Paradise Gray, who performed in the 1980s with the Afrocentric rap group X Clan.
"Mainstream rap music has lost its reverence for anything besides money," Gray said.
Today's rappers threaten to kill people who disrespect them, "but they sit back and let you disrespect our legacy, our culture, our history," he said.
"What," Gray asked, "will the disrespect of your humanity and your blackness cost you?"
http://news.yahoo.com/rap-disrespect-black-icons-raises-concerns-152951380.html
Rap disrespect of black icons raises concerns
By JESSE WASHINGTON | Associated Press
33 mins ago
Malcolm X and rap music have always fit together like a needle in the groove, connected by struggle, strength and defiance. But three recent episodes involving the use or misuse of Malcolm and other black icons have raised the question: Has rap lost touch with black history?
Chart-topping rapstress Nikki Minaj provoked widespread outrage with an Instagram post featuring one of black history's most poignant images: Malcolm X peering out the window of his home, rifle in hand, trying to defend his wife and children from firebombs while under surveillance by federal agents. Superimposed on the photo: the title of Minaj's new song, which denigrates certain black men and repeats the N-word 42 times.
That came after Minaj's mentor Lil Wayne recorded a verse last year using the civil rights martyr Emmett Till in a sexual metaphor, and the hip-hop mogul Russell Simmons posted a Harriet Tubman "sex tape" video on his comedy channel.
What is happening to mainstream rap music, which was launched by Simmons and is now ruled by the likes of Minaj and Wayne?
"I don't want to say today's rappers are not educated about black history, but they don't seem as aware as rap generations before them," said Jermaine Hall, editor-in-chief of Vibe, the hip-hop magazine and website.
While previous generations had to struggle with the racism and neglect of the 1970s or the crack epidemic of the 1980s, Hall said, today's young people have not faced the same type of racial struggle — "They're sort of getting further and further away from the civil rights movement."
"In the '80s, whether it was KRS-One, Public Enemy, or the Native Tongues, that entire movement, it was very in tune with black history," Hall said. "They knew everything about Malcolm, about Martin, about Rosa Parks. Now, the new rappers just aren't as in tune."
Indeed, Minaj issued a statement expressing disbelief at the uproar and apologizing to Malcolm's family "if the meaning of the photo was misconstrued." Wayne wrote to the Till family to "acknowledge your hurt, as well as the letter you sent to me via your attorneys." Simmons was the only one to say, "I am sincerely sorry."
The apologies did not change much for Pierre Bennu, a filmmaker and artist who said Malcolm X's life was dedicated to advocating for the humanity of black people, while Minaj's song was simply dehumanizing.
When he saw Minaj's manipulation, Bennu said, "I felt punched in the gut."
The episode inspired him to post a mash-up video (http://bit.ly/1fpoFYB) laying Minaj's song over the infamous 1941 Walter Lantz cartoon "Scrub Me Mama With A Boogie Beat," which depicts a town of lazy black people hypnotized by a seductive washerwoman.
Various mainstream rap artists seem reluctant to defend Minaj and Wayne; The Associated Press sought out five, but none returned calls for comment.
Jasiri X, a rapper whose music focuses on black empowerment and current events, said many of today's mainstream rappers use images of revolutionary black icons to promote an anti-establishment image.
"All the while, they're being funded and pushed by major corporations," he said.
"I see Nikki and other artists, whether Kanye or Jay-Z, adopting these revolutionary images or using a clip or saying their name, but never practice the principles which these revolutionaries gave their lives for," Jasiri said.
It was not always so.
Hip-hop began in the early 1970s as an alternative to gang activity. Before the music was recorded, founding fathers like DJ Afrika Bambaataa — whose slogan was "peace, love, unity and having fun" — would play Malcolm X's voice over instrumental break beats.
"Not only did it sound funky but it helped raise our consciousness," Davey wrote on his website.
Davey attended many early rap concerts at Harlem's Audubon Ballroom, where Malcolm was assassinated. As the music gained steam, X was constantly honored on wax. KRS-One duplicated Malcolm's gun-in-the-window pose on the cover of his 1988 classic album, "By Any Means Necessary." In 1991, Tupac rhymed on "Words of Wisdom": "No Malcolm X in my history text, why is that? / Cause he tried to educate and liberate all blacks."
Malcolm's voice and image appeared on so many records and videos, "many would remark that he was an emcee," Davey wrote.
Tubman also is a longtime rap staple, mentioned by everyone from Ice Cube ("She helped me run like Harriet Tubman") to Pharoahe Monch ("A railroad to underground like Harriet Tubman"). Till, too, has been mentioned in songs such as Kanye's breakthrough 2003 single "Through The Wire."
But today's rappers reflect our money-obsessed society, said Bakari Kitwana, whose Rap Sessions organization just moderated a series of community dialogues between the civil rights and hip-hop generations.
"We see a lot of things going on with our young people, and we don't feel like we are teaching them values that can compete with the way the value of money is ingrained in our culture," Kitwana said. "Everything is just focused on money. If you can get money, whatever else you're doing doesn't matter."
"It's reached a crisis point," he said. "I came up in the '70s and '80s, and greed has always been present, but I don't think I've ever seen it like it is now."
He was echoed by Paradise Gray, who performed in the 1980s with the Afrocentric rap group X Clan.
"Mainstream rap music has lost its reverence for anything besides money," Gray said.
Today's rappers threaten to kill people who disrespect them, "but they sit back and let you disrespect our legacy, our culture, our history," he said.
"What," Gray asked, "will the disrespect of your humanity and your blackness cost you?"
http://news.yahoo.com/rap-disrespect-black-icons-raises-concerns-152951380.html