- "Bitches ain't shit but hoe's and trick's. Lick on dee's nutz and suck the dick..."- Snoop Dogg, Multi-platinum Rap artist/Actor(?).
- "Nappy headed hoe's..."- Don Imus, Shock Jock.
Where was Gloria Allred and all the Reverends? I find these lyrics much more disturbing then what Imus said for one reason: By a show of hands how many people knew who Don Imus was before last week? Okay. And how many have heard of Snoop Dogg? Yeeeeah.
The kids I know love the Rap. Hell, I used to listen to it. That was all I listened to in my early high school days. The kids sing these lyrics like they don't mean anything. They don't see the hate behind the words. Rap has had racist and sexist lyrics for years. Remember the Ice Cube classic "Cave Bitch"off of the Lethal Injection album? It's a song where Ice Cube rips on white women that pursue successful black men.
I have watched black stand up comics on TV tell racist jokes about white people before and no one even looked the other way. I had a comic do almost a complete set right in front of me, using me as an example of how white people still "rule the country and won't give a nigga a break..." and calling me "masta" numerous times. I don't recall anyone calling the news stations or pulling me aside and suggesting that I should contact my local civil rights rep.
I just want to know where the one lane road came from? How is it almost acceptable for a black artist (music, comedy, or movies) to make racial comments and no one looks at it different but the second a white person says something racial the guys endorsements, professional career, and the way he is perceived in society is shattered? Your thoughts.
6 comments:
As stupid as it sounds, I've come to one conclusion: Entertainment. Now I know Imus was doing a news radio show, which some might call the "news" entertainment these days, but it was taken as his "beliefs" I believe that's the honest difference. If you are entertaining people making them laugh about racial tension, it's ok. It's okay to make fun of it, you just can't be serious about it. I quote Michael Scott from Dunder-Mifflin: "It's not ok to call a retarded person retarded, but it is ok to call your friends retarded when they do something retarded."
I also don't have the direct qoute, so I am apologizing ahead of time. At the Rutgers press conference about Imus, when the Q&A was opened up, a reporter asked some questions regarding Rap Music. He asked the players if they listened to it and how they compared the two: Imus's remarks and Rap Music's lyrics. The basketball player answered something to the tune of "these are two different things."
It's not right when anybody says something racist, whether the person is white, black, or chartruse. BUT, it makes sense that people would be a lot more sensitive to something that comes out of a white person given the history of whites enslaving and oppressing blacks. The history is the reason for the double standard, whether it's fair or not. I sympathize with what you're saying though. I think you would love the Jason Whitlock column I linked to on my blog.
I know that the Imus comment is racially tinged but more so than I think it actually was 'cause it was taken out of context.
Imus was comparing the black girls on Rutgers (who he thought were ugly) with the black girls on Tennessee (Imus said they were essentially hot).
Still, even in that context, it was a stupid comment.
(Great post there Cruiser!)
John, I want to kick the shit out of someone every time I hear the "slave" card being pulled. 174 years!? Get over it! I wasn't responsible for it and my Great-Great-Great Grandfather wasn't. I have never heard a Jewish person request an apology from the Germen government for the Holocaust and that was only 62 years ago and still has survivors that are alive!
I said slavery AND oppression. The White man's wrongs against Blacks didn't end with The Emancipation Proclamation ya know. Institutionalized bigotry and descrimination in this country is a lot more recent than the Holocaust. I'm not talking about anyone playing any sort of "card," I'm just saying that the historical record is clearly why people are more sensitive about Whites making racist comments.
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