Thug culture 'ideals' destroy Black Americans

I have long thought this; but when I said it aloud I was often poo-pooed by whites who had no clue how bad the effect was in reality. Or worse, had blacks tell me I wasn't 'down' and needed to be 'keeping it real.' :mad::frown1:

The 'ideals' of thug culture are destroying black Americans

The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
Published on: 10/17/07

We know where yo' family live
Trust me you don't want me up in yo' crib
Wit' a ski mask on duct taping your kids
You can pray all you want
But I don't forgive
— from "Hurt," by T.I., featuring Alfamega and Busta Rhymes

Clifford Harris Jr. would have been celebrated last Saturday night at the BET Hip-Hop Awards, had he made it to the ceremony. Instead, he was in police custody, charged with illegal possession of firearms.

The young rapper could have stood before a cheering audience in downtown Atlanta and accepted his award for Best CD of the Year, had he steered clear of machine guns and silencers. Instead, he was handcuffed, fingerprinted, photographed, incarcerated.

Harris — whose stage name is T.I. —should be riding the wave of his incredible success, enjoying freedom, fame and fortune. Instead, he's looking at the prospect of several years in prison. He was arrested Saturday afternoon after he was allegedly caught trying to take possession of the weapons from his bodyguard, who was apparently cooperating with authorities. Already a convicted crack dealer, Harris faces a potentially lengthy sentence.

Somewhere along the way, a cadre of young black men and women began glorifying violence, misogyny and thuggishness, accepting incarceration as inevitable, resigning themselves to lives on the margins of mainstream society. They created a thug culture that has been commodified — celebrated in music and movies, sold to poor adolescents in wretched neighborhoods as well as affluent teenagers in upscale communities.

But the violence isn't just playacting; it's not just teenagers trying on a rebellious facade. Young adults — many of them men, most of them black — get arrested. They go to prison. They die on the streets.
There is now a cottage industry dedicated to defending rap music, a group of enablers who glorify hard-core rap as a legitimate art form reflecting the bitter real-life experiences of ghetto inhabitants. But I have no patience for the academic exegeses. This so-called music and the lifestyle it glorifies is a malignancy destroying black America. What does it take for mothers and fathers, ministers and teachers, music executives and TV moguls to turn it off?

Plus I got a hundred goons wit me
Dressed in black
Fifty at the front door, fifty at the back
Half got 'Ks (AK-47s), half got macs (Mac 10s)
— from "Hurt"

Last year, T.I. attended the funeral of Philant Johnson, 26, his best friend and personal assistant, who was shot dead in a gun battle among moving cars on I-75 near Cincinnati. Police said the gunfire followed an argument involving unidentified locals and T.I.'s entourage at a Cincinnati nightclub. If Harris had regrets about Johnson's death, they apparently didn't manifest as pacifism. He kept a small arsenal at his College Park home, according to police.

The criminal justice system — notorious for grinding black men down — gave the young rapper T.I. a second chance after he was convicted for selling cocaine. Not only has he launched a highly successful music career, but he has also won notice as an actor. He has a role in the new movie, "American Gangster," starring Denzel Washington and Russell Crowe.

But given that second chance, what did Harris do? If he had machine guns, as police say, at whom did he intend to point them?
Homicide is the leading cause of death among black men between the ages of 15 and 30. And it is a fratricidal enterprise. Young black men are killed by other young black men.

If white entertainers were making millions singing about the slaughter of black men and mistreatment of black women, city streets would clog with protesters. Demonstrators would pack the halls of Congress. Commerce would grind to a halt as black activists demanded boycotts. But somehow, the violence and misogyny of T.I., 50 Cent and Nelly are less inflammatory.

Yes, a lot of their music is purchased by white consumers, as a lot of it is marketed by white executives. But blaming The Man seems shallow and irresponsible when black Americans are abetting their own destruction.

Comments

I don't know if I totally agree with that. I listen to some gangster rap and yeah some of it is disgusting, but you do not see me trying to perpetuate that life style. It again goes back to the morals being instilled in the home.

Charles Barkley said it best:

"I am not a role model. Teachers, Parents, they are role models."

The record companies have basically said to these idiots "Go steal and shoot up all you want. We've got plenty for bail as long as you keep making us millions." Kanye West with his bratty Pirma Donna antics should be ashamed of himself too. So even though he doesn't shoot up folks or steal, he basically says "It's OK to be an asshole because you'll still get paid."

Why are the youth paying so much attention to these morons?

PARENTS ARE ASLEEP AT THE WHEEL!!

I remember 13 years ago I was Secretary of a Mall Merchants Board. As such, we got reports of all the bad kids that did damage or committed crimes on mall property. One Friday there was a kid who put his fist through an arcade game because it got turned off because he wouldn't leave after the management told him to for picking fights. Security was summoned, the kid cuffed and somehow this security officers gun went off killing the kid in cuffs. It fell to me to make the final decision on the security man and make a statement to the media. I fired the security man citing gross negligence and pressed criminal charges for him carrying his weapon unsecured. When word got out that we did this, the mother of the young dead kid went on this media blitz. Nightly for a week I had to see this woman on the news "My boy was no criminal. They shot him in cold blood because he was black." She went on to call the Mall Management racist. I couldn't stand it and went on the record and said that we had not only contributed to the organizations the mother had asked for donations to, but we were paying for the funeral. She then got on TV saying "it's all racist blood money."

I then made my last statement as this woman was now suing us.

"I sympathize with the family in this time of need, but I must respond to some of the accusations leveled. Firstly, there was no racism involved. The now fired security officer was black, the manager of the arcade is black, and the young employee who reported the incident is black. I have numerous reports of the deceased young man wreaking damage on the property and inciting fights within mall property. He was repeatedly removed from the property by police officers and I am ready to make these reports available to the media for perusal as I can no longer allow the decent staff of this business to be slandered in this way."

3 days later the mother dropped the suit. Maybe it was because I had done what I did, but I truly think it was because her other son had been arrested for a drive by shooting.

So again, who is truly at fault? Is it the out of touch parents who spend no time with their kids and do nothing to instill values and proper morals?

You decide.

No disrespect NJ, but this falls on parents again and not the media or the artists they allow to get away with this.
 
Mmm...I'm going to have to partly disagree with Osiris...true, the burden is on the parents. Ultimately, that's so true. HOWEVER, I do believe the media has a great influence over children. Especially when kids have no parental oversight.

And, perhaps I have no right in saying this, since I come from a lower middle-class family, (and btw, nj, I wouldn't "poo-poo" that comment you made, I'd agree), but the cycle of poverty continues. Osiris, you're right, it's up to the parents, but if those parents come from an environment which harbors lack of control or parental guidance (ie ghetto, slums, welfare babies, etc) how CAN that cycle be stopped? All these kids hear is that gansta rap continuing to poison their minds, perpetuating what they see every day, what they experience: drugs, killing, hate, are all okay - more than okay - it's the hip/cool thing. It's how they're going to fit into the only society they know.

I don't have an answer on how to break the cycle, but I DO recognize the issue.
 
I have to give you some props for that one and you are right that the cycle continues, but how do you account for those kids that do get out of it, get that knowledge, ignore the criminal morass, and go on to be leaders and morally upstanding? I would have to say you have broken the cycle.

Perhaps what is needed is those of the community that have grown up, overcome and survived should try to break the cycle. However, how do you accomplish that? Parents are again the biggest part. Not all of it, but a huge part.
I think a good descriptor of the differences would be two very well known but exceedingly opposite in style hip hop moguls.

Russell Simmons and Marion "Suge" Knight.

Both men have founded and run successful hip hop labels. Knight chose to hire hoodrats and thugs and ended up suffering the fate of such.

Russell Simmons I admire because he still sticks more or less to the positive path and believes that given the chance, guys from the hood can make a change and make a difference. Look at Jay-Z. No one in their right mond would make him President of a major record label because he doesn't have the college background. Guess what? He is and he is making a success of it. Simmons sees that good in people and fosters it.

Wouldn't you agree with this view to a degree at least?
 
Osiris I agree with your 2nd statement more than your first. I really don't think parents can be blamed or held responsible for their childs taste in music.

Where parents do come in is in giving them a stable and good understanding of acceptable morals and ethics. I would like to believe if a child has this they won't want to listen to the thug/gangsta' music that often has no concept of right and wrong. Or worse glorifies illegal behavior.
 
Again, a very true statement, but my issue with parents is this:

  • Children having children - This is a huge problem in our community and it isn't getting better. I also know it ain't just black folk doing this either. Which leads to...
  • Parents vs. Best Friends - This is the problem I am having in my house right now. For years the oldest was raised as mommy's best friend. Now that he is 16, he disrespects his mother and thinks he's grown.
  • Television as a babysitter - Too many parents are working hard to give their kids better, but in doing so, the TV and radio become the "moral guide" because mom and dad aren't there.
We pay close attention to what our kids watch, listen to, read, and the games they play on the PC and game systems. I'm not going to say it's foolproof because once they are out of your sight, all bets are off, but you can at least make sure they have the tools to be good kids and reject the deterioration of our culture.

So I will back down from saying it is due to parents, but it can't be denied that a great deal of this could be started and/or prevented with parents or lack there of.
 
You hit the nail on the head Osiris! It's a problem with at least 5 bulleted issues which are equally inportant within it.

You should be touring with Bill Cosby and Pouissaint talking about this stuff.
 
Unfortunately, I have little respect for Bill Cosby and his "family values". I have a friend who worked for him and he is not the most virtuous man. Nor do I like his holding black universitites up to immense scrutiny due to his millions in donations.

At any rate, I digress. On the music tip, a lot of these little thugs in the industry could learn a thing or two from a few rappers. Some old school and some not so old school:

Chuck D and Public Enemy - OK, I can hear you asying what about that silliness of Sistah Souljah or Flavor Flav. I'll give you that they lsot their focus, but Chuck D never did. He rapped about issues that were destroying the community. I remember he would rent huge trucks and roll through the neighborhoods handing out turkeys to the folks in the hood. He has always given back and never turned to crime.

Young MC - Here was a young man who had fun with his hip hop. He rapped about silly stuff or what you need to do to get yourself out of the ghtetto or how to be better (Keep Your Eyes on the Prize was his one song that comes to mind). With the rise of gangster rappers, he quickly vanished the scene.

Will "The Fresh Prince" Smith - All you need to say is he has fun with it and doesn't get out of hand or criminal with it. Much like the more grown up version of Young MC.

X-Clan - These brothas are so hard core they scare most other brothas to death. Again a group who's lyrics were statement on the society as a whole and how everything outside the black community directly affected it. Definitely a group against racism or religion of any sort (they had a special dislike of the Nation of Islam), their hardcore lyrics were the pulse for a movement that unfortunately they could not get off the ground. I think this was one of the saddest incidents in the black community. The only song that got any mainstream play time was Fire and Earth. A shame as their other songs really hit the pulse of Black America more than this song.

If only we could have more Chuck Ds and fewer ODBs.
 

Blog entry information

Author
Principessa
Read time
3 min read
Views
329
Comments
7
Last update

More entries in General

More entries from Principessa

Share this entry