January 16, 2004
Hip-Hop and Politics, Volume 2,861
Jeff Chang links to a meaty discussion between Davey D and Cedric Muhammad of blackelectorate.com. It's a good read, and some of Cedric's thoughts are a nice complement to my earlier ramblings on the subject.
Cedric Muhammad and Davey D on "How Hip-Hop's Political Movement Gets Compromised"
Cedric: ...the problem with the Hip Hop political movement is that many of the activists don’t have good relationships with the artists. I know that there are a few that do, but on a whole I think we become what we condemned. A lot of us have become very preachy and we don’t network. A lot of us don’t like the music and we spend a lot of time condemning it as opposed to building relationships and doing business so we can get close to the artists so we can eventually influence them. Many of the ‘great thinkers’ within Hip Hop could not get a hearing with some of these artists...
...I think there’s a major disconnect behind the scenes between many of us who have all these great ideas and are from a political grassroots network and the artists. Lets be honest, the young people like the artists. They don’t care too much about too much news or what intellectuals within Hip Hop are saying. They wanna know what’s going on with Jay-Z or what’s up 50 Cent or what’s happening with the G-Unit. They wanna know about Westside Connection and the whole nine. I think some of us on the intellectual side resent that. We resent that influence that these artists have on the basis of superficiality. Rather then embracing this and synthesizing this with some of the ideas that we have. Once this happens things will change...
...Whenever you are looking for some of your out front people to be political leaders, present the ideas and do the thinking, you are going to always be in trouble. I think you need that coach, that GM and that strategist who are behind the scenes who can help that person who has the limelight and popularity...
Posted by jsmooth995 at January 16, 2004 12:15 PM
I am so tired of the black vs. white paradigm in politics. The same things that will help Black people -- better education and health care -- will help ALL people. The whole belief that only Black people will look out for the interest of Black people is moot because even when Black people gain political power... the problems persist.
As mentioned in the interview between Davey and Cedric, young Black people are tired of the same old HNIC politics-as-usual bullshit. And I can't blame them. The whole notion of "sticking together" is painfully antiquated. Black people are but one small group among many small groups. Even rich, white people only make up a small portion of our country. We should be striving for coalition BUILDING instead of self-imposed political segregation.
Ultimately, the legacy of Martin Luther King and other charismatic Civil Rights leaders has been to stymie Black political consciousness. Almost no progress has been made since the 1960s, and some might argue things have gotten worse in many areas (particularly criminal justice). Add to this, the persistence of the Nation of Islam in a position of major influence, and it is easy to understand why Black people remain at the bottom of social statistics.
Only when Black people see that their interests = the interests of other groups... will the necessary coalition building be accepted as the next step in Black political activism. Even in cities where Blacks comprise a majority of voters... Black solidarity is never enough. For any group, coalition building is essential to political effectiveness.
Posted by: eric at January 16, 2004 8:08 PM
coalition building on the basis of what though?
I say we need a class-based perspective. All working people have basically the same interests, like good schools, decent housing, healthcare, etc. We can't focus on other issues when these core things aren't resolved yet.
Posted by: Kai at January 17, 2004 12:46 PM
re: Eric - "The whole notion of "sticking together" is painfully antiquated."
When my parents moved to this country from the islands, they needed a community that would help them out in this white man's world for them to better adjust with the culture shock and to be gainfully employed to feed us yoots.
Since then, the carribean community here has since diminushed and sectioned themselves off in what can be classified as turf wars simply because of the HNIC attitude the islands generated for themselves. If you have ever been to Jamaica, you would know it is one of the most competitive places on earth in respect to education, sports and politics...everyone wants to be HNIC and won't comprimise cause that is what is taught from birth.
I do not beleive "sticking together" is antiquated...we just don't know how to execute it properly or have the proper resources to make it work for all.
As for your coalition concept, think of it like this: a promoter books Jay-Z, Metallica, and (fill in techno DJ name here) for a country wide tour. Some cities are diverse enough for it to work with both a large draw and no incidents but the majority of the cities will see it as either a crossover ploy or won't bother showing up because the bill is TOO diverse.
The building process should have started with extremely educated people (ex. Cornell West) networking within the community to the business leaders, the media, the public voices/figure heads, and the entertainers to unify a mandate of what needs to be done for the good of all. Once that is agreed upon, only then can we move forward.
My 2 cents of wishful thinking
Posted by: Kelron Magnanimous at January 18, 2004 6:09 PM
Yeah, absolutely... I'm not saying the Black community shouldn't organize itself and work as a unit (when it can). But that isn't enough. And if the unity is based on race, the movement is limiting its ability to expand and grow.
I was once an activist and I NEVER got involved with a group that used race as an organizing principle. I worked with environment groups, labor unions, cooperatives, and gun control groups. There are lots of different groups out there and also civic politics is a great place to build inter-communal coalitions.
The other painfully antiquated notion is that it's all about black vs white. Yet our biggest and most influential cities are quite diverse.
I just think the logical step is to focus on non-racial issues, mostly because racism is a cultural and you can't just tell people not to be racist. But you CAN tell people to pay more taxes for schools. And you can improve the environment. And you can limit sales of ammo. And you can organize workers. Etc.
Thanks for your thoughts.
Posted by: eric at January 18, 2004 6:38 PM
A true working coalition must begin at the "boring" local level. Councilpeople school boards state legislators. The effective coalition will build strength through local ordinance, truly affecting the day to day lives of people. This will also give individuals a place to go to make a true complaint, or contribution. Here is where government can help business grow and prosper with helpful ordinances, mass transit routes, where sidewalks, street lights,and prideful citizens can live and exchange commerce, and grow to greater power, and fortune. It'll be contagious.
Posted by: GC at February 6, 2004 11:01 PM
I need help proving to my mother that she is a moron. She is convinced that hip hop is only for black people. She thinks that I am a "wannabe black person" because I am an avid hip hop listener. I grew up in the 80's with 3rd Bass, Fat Boys and L.L. Cool J. Can anyone send me links on hip hop history and culture. I need to expand my mothers horizons. Thanks everyone, get back to me through my email!!!
Jason B.
Posted by: Jason Bravo at October 7, 2004 12:06 AM
I need help proving to my mother that she is a moron. She is convinced that hip hop is only for black people. She thinks that I am a "wannabe black person" because I am an avid hip hop listener. I grew up in the 80's with 3rd Bass, Fat Boys and L.L. Cool J. Can anyone send me links on hip hop history and culture. I need to expand my mothers horizons. Thanks everyone, get back to me through my email!!!
Jason B.
Posted by: Jason Bravo at October 7, 2004 12:06 AM
my email is JB66NY@aol.com
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