Broken Glass Everywhere
Is hate more dangerous when it’s posted above our drinking fountains and restrooms? Or is hate more lethal when we believe ourselves to be free of it? When we believe that our society is free of bigotry, structural advantage, and prejudice is the time when hate can reveal itself most shockingly. Can we as a hip-hop nation recognize the way that we both contribute to hate as well as suffer at its hands?
I read 45 posts on another hip-hop website responding to the Lil Wayne and Baby kiss. Of those 45 comments 31 used the word ‘faggot ’. What I was reading had nothing to do with two rappers; the comments spoke exclusively to the unbridled hate of the words they were written with. It is no secret that hip-hop is a genre and culture in which homophobia is expected so these words were no surprise. It is natural to react with discomfort to anything which is unfamiliar. The concern comes rather when discomfort becomes equated with hate toward the unfamiliar. These comments were charged with language that was dehumanizing and reminiscent of the reckless rhetoric of anti-civil rights protestors in Birmingham or Selma. These words were written behind the anonymous keyboard that allowed for the genuine testimonies free of the restraints of political and social acceptability. Almost no one yells faggot in a crowded street. But we will type it with rage or say it in jest in the security of whatever privacy we feel whether that it is the basement with our boys or the boardroom among trustees.
Johns Hopkins Sigma Chi fraternity binge drank below mock-lynched skeletons decked out in their most ghetto fabulous grillz and bling during their “Halloween in the Hood” Party. The ghetto became a romanticized fantasy while a history of racial violence became a clever prop. Hip-Hop imagery symbolized a connection between historical acts or racial hate to contemporary racial stereotypes. I don’t believe that these kids deliberately did something to make others feel bad but I do believe that they didn’t make a connection to their own history or their own feelings. It is our faith in ourselves that I fear most – the belief that “I’m not racist but…” but what? Say the next sentence and then re-think the first.
What made these moments terrible was that they were representative of attitudes that exist right below the surface of our accepted ideals. In these moments of vulnerability beliefs spoken from the heart trumped the constraints of the structure created by the mind. We have convinced ourselves that we have passed through the phase of prejudice and subjugation and that these are issues of history. We no longer want the responsibility of our feelings nor the burden of facing who we truly are if we believe the things we believe. Yet there are moments that appear stronger than our will, and may be more tempting than our best judgment. Moments when hate protects us from our fears and the unknown; and when dehumanization makes the characteristics of humanity easier to understand.
Artwork @ rory.roryandcraig.com
Vote Palms Out.
12:30 pm on November 10th, 2006
deep… faggot.
12:50 pm on November 10th, 2006
i guess your point is proved by the comment above
4:43 pm on November 10th, 2006
dope writing man, couldn’t have said it better myself. you’ve got my vote
8:05 pm on November 10th, 2006
Hey I’m from Johns Hopkins and really agree with what you had to say about Sig Chi. Get at me at djstarton (at) jhu.edu
I’m poli-sci but i’ve spent a majority of my time at Hopkins writing about society, hip-hop and modern music culture.
Peace
10:49 am on November 11th, 2006
posts like these are the reason i’m happy to vote for y’all.
4:11 pm on November 11th, 2006
great read. you guys are the only ones in the hiphop world who approach topics like this with care and intellect- instead of fear, resenment, denial, or dismission. if you guys wrote the big hiphop publications, kids would be smarter. adults too.
-derrick
4:23 pm on November 11th, 2006
i’m proud to have an article like this on palms out.
2:27 am on November 12th, 2006
“It is no secret that hip-hop is a genre and culture in which homophobia is expected so these words were no surprise.”
I don’t think hip-hop is a homophobic culture per se; its just reflecting the homophobia of the culture (mainstream/American/etc) as a WHOLE. It’d be nice if more artists in hip-hop took a radical stance against it, but (unfortunately) I don’t see that happening anytime soon.
6:44 am on November 12th, 2006
“deep… faggot.”
bwaaahahahahahaha.
tooshay mang.
and folks, don’t be a faggot and try to correct my spelling.
so yeah..faggot. not a bad werd. same with nigger. dehumizing, yup..but ay..we got bigger things to worry about. like bombs and rich people. we say faggot and nigger ’cause it’s stupid to be pc all the time. if the shoe fits..
call it hate if you want. ’cause it is.. but the world needs balance don’t it?
boost mobile..where you at?
6:54 am on November 12th, 2006
i don’t aim to offend. i just wanted to stimulate some critical thought. fuck the dick sucking. and straight up..weezy kissing baby on the mouth is fucking gay. wayne kills tho. and baby’ll do it f’real. ca$h money bwoy.
6:57 am on November 12th, 2006
oh yea and don’t forget to keep some sunshine on ya faces folks..
12:51 am on November 13th, 2006
I applaud you for this one. I don’t read hip-hop blogs ( you guys are about as much a hip-hop blog as my blog is, so I don’t count you ) and have stopped frequenting certain hip-hop forums because of this type of shit. It’s a constant thing. I’f it’s not “oh that’s gay,” or “oh that’s some fag shit,” it’s just “nigga, nigga, nigga” constantly. And whether you believe that “oh it’s a term of endearment” shit or not the fact is that when these terms are bandied about it doesn’t take the sting out of them, it just removes context and makes our whole society and culture more hateful. I’ve gotten into arguments with people over this and thier defence is usually to say I’m “wack” or to call me a “faggot.” One dude actually had the nerve to say when he says “oh that’s gay” he doesn’t mean homosexual and that the word “gay” doesn’t even mean “homosexual.” I could only say “yeah, ’cause when you called that record you didn’t like gay what you were really saying was that it’s happy… right.” It’s out of hand and people don’t even want to see the hate that’s in them. It’s not like I’m saying you have to live without hate or prejudice or that you have to over-analyse everything you say, just own up to your own thoughts and actions and reflect on them once in a while. I’m glad to see somebody else stand up and speak about this.
2:03 pm on November 14th, 2006
I rarely ever comment on your blog, even though I read it from time to time, but I have to applaud what you’ve written here. It one of the more truthfull and insightfull bits of writing I’ve read in a while.
We are too complacent in this country and believe that the problems are “someone else’s problems” and that these issues have “gone away” and people should “get over it”. Well, they haven’t gone away and people shouldn’t get over it. If it weren’t for the struggles of those before us, we wouldn’t be where we are today and the struggle continues. People need to stand up and fight, even if it’s not your struggle. Stand up for something or be pushed down!
11:56 pm on November 14th, 2006
the black community is not inherently homophobic. is it our fault that white society wants to consume or privilege certain representations of African Americans?
6:25 pm on March 13th, 2007
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