Cultural Appropriation in Hip-Hop

Know anything about Hip-Hop? Cool, you should listen to this podcast. Don't know anything about Hip-Hop? Still cool, you should still listen to this podcast! It covers a history of Hip-Hop's beginnings, cultural appropriation of Hip-Hop today, and the consequences of this cultural appropriation. And it's all narrated by a privileged white kid from the suburbs (talk about fitting).

Prisoners of Poverty

2.8 million people walked the streets of Chicago today,

but while they were criss-crossing across those cracks in the concrete

not one of them noticed that they were passing through a prison

A prison where inmates of income do time in the dungeons of cardboard castles

Where the cafeteria is a trash can and the bathroom is a brick wall

Where the only occupation is an outstretched hand held up by the hinges of hunger

and a fleeting faith in humanity

Where the visiting room is divided by a one way mirror:

Made of excuses and explanations, it enables everyone to ignore the incarcerations

So a teen can sit seeking food front and center on the sidewalk,

while the human herd, unable to hear, hurries past him like livestock.

Too focused on our future at a suitable cubicle

to see that a donation to a juvenile is usually doable.

We’ll leave the heavy lifting up to legislation

in hopes that our nation

will stop its endless arming for wars

and start fighting the battle to bring its homeless indoors.

Instead of spending money making missiles long range,

I think it makes more sense, to use our dollars for change.

But, until the day we stop building bullet holes in our democracy

for citizens to fall through

Until that day,

The change will have to be made by you.

Drawing Up God

Over the course of history, different races have altered Jesus to resemble their own. If you look closely at the picture above you can see how each culture has tweaked his appearance to resemble their own.

So I asked myself, why did people feel the need to change his appearance? Why do I think of a white guy when I picture Jesus rather than a middle-eastern man? Well I think it comes down to relatability. People want to feel a connection with their religion. They want to feel like it is their own and so they will make every part of it as relatable to their own personal lives as possible. It really makes me think about how self centered humanity is at times. Especially when Jesus was first being depicted, races were far more segregated than they are now so people didn't want to be praying to someone who looked foreign. We always like to say that god created man in his image, but I wonder if it's actually the other way around.

"Korean Jesus" from 21 Jump Street

In addition to this, I would argue that a parallel can be drawn between the way people have depicted Jesus and memory. Now forgive me because I did get this from Wikipedia, but it brings up an interesting point. It states that, "his artistic depictions... are based on second or third hand interpretations". Now as I recently learned from a Radiolab on memory, each time you "recall" a memory, you aren't retrieving the actual event from metaphorical file cabinet in your brain, but rather recreating an entirely new memory based on your last recreation of that memory. It went on to say that the more times you recreate the memory the more you alter it to make it more about you. Just as how nearly if not every time Jesus was painted or illustrated he was recreated from a previous recreation. Not only this, but he was also tailored to be more like the race of the person doing the recreating. Clearly, there are some similarities between the two processes.

Spongebob filling memories in his brain (wrong!)

Another reason why I think people have altered Jesus' appearances was to further their agendas. In a fairly recent npr broadcast, author of The Color of Christ: The Son of God and The Saga of Race in America, Edward Blum, discusses how different groups of people have used Jesus' race to further their causes. In the late 1800's as waves of Jewish immigrants came to the U.S. some religious artists decided to severe Jesus' appearance from it's Semitic roots. These artists in favor of immigration restrictions began to depict Jesus with blonde hair and blue eyes as apposed to dark brown hair and brown eyes. Again, we see this trend of people altering Jesus' appearances to benefit themselves.

What does this say about humanity that we alter religious figures to benefit ourselves and our own agenda's? What are some other possible reasons for altering Jesus' appearance? Are there any modern day examples of the power of people wanting to racially relate to people of power or fame? (for example in American T.V. shows there are very few lead actors who are a minority) 

Reducing Characters to Racial Stereotypes

Recently while eating at a local sub shop with some buddies of mine I happened to notice a particularly interesting comic book. After looking a bit closer at the cover I noticed a few things about the black man depicted in the boat that I think show some racism on the part of the author/illustrator. 

For example, while all the other men are saving someone, working the sail, or looking in horror as they sail away, the black man is the one rowing the boat. He is the only responsible for doing the hard work. Also, while everyone else in the boat is fully clothed he isn’t wearing a shirt which I think again simplifies his character too nothing more than someone capable of manual labor. Additionally, the other characters depicted seem to have received more detail. They all receive dramatic poses, facial expressions, while again he is simplified to the guy who rows the boat. Along with this, his body almost appears to be concealed by shadow. We can’t even see his eyes, almost like he is identity is trying to be concealed by one of those black bars the police use to keep people anonymous. Lastly, and I admit that this may be an over-analyzation, but it almost appears that the white man in the back of the boat is afraid of the black man rather than the volcano. These were just some initial observations before I had any real knowledge of the content of the story.

After doing some research I discovered that the man enslaved person who was freed and the story takes place during the civil war, but I don’t think that changes the fact that this cover is racist. If anything I think it can enforce this claim. The author/illustrator has oversimplified and diminished the character of the man rowing to nothing more than a freed slave. All the other men in the boat clearly are feeling all sorts of emotions at this point in time and we can tell this from their poses and facial expressions. The African American man’s face appears to be completely blank, and lacking emotion. Although, it’s hard to even tell what his emotion is because again his face is partially concealed by shadow. His pose is merely rowing and this conveys no feelings whatsoever. In my opinion all of this can lead us to the conclusion that the author/illustrator has oversimplified this man’s character to little else than a black slave.

Now although this book was published in 1963 I think these themes are true in hollywood in modern america as well. The first example that comes to mind, I’ll have to admit is dated, but it seems so shocking nowadays that I think it’s worth mentioning.
(If the video doesn't load use this link https://m.youtube.com/watch?v=ZTchUep_bmg&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DZTchUep_bmg)

This blatant racism was acceptable in the mid 80’s and continues this theme of oversimplification. They literally play a gong every time the guy’s name is said. Gedde’s Watanabe’s character obviously isn’t developed really beyond the point of the racist depiction of a funny chinese guy.

Another example of racism in hollywood that is brought to mind comes from the recent movie remake of classic American t.v. show, The Lone Ranger. In which Johnny Depp portrays “Tonto”, a Comanche Native American. Now this example isn’t as blatantly racist as some of the other examples but it’s at the very least questionable. For instance, in a Huffington Post live discussion Chris Eyre, a film director and producer and an enrolled member of the Cheyenne and Arapaho Tribes, makes the says that, “I literally don’t know what is Native American about the character Tonto”. He went on to mention that Kemo Sabe is actually Potawatomi rather than Comanche. Between the face paint not actually being authentic to what Comanche people wore, and the random placement of a crow on Depp’s head, the film seems to depict some strange combination of racial stereotypes rather than an actual representation of a Comanche person.

Although diminishing characters of books and movies to nothing more than the stereotypes of their race has lessened since the 1960’s, it seems that this trend still continues to this day.

Taking Immigration Seriously

A New York Times article today showed this image of a group of boys (some unsure of their age) trying to illegally immigrate to the US. The article contained this image because it was reporting on the government's new plan to provide "$2 million in grants to enroll about 100 lawyers and paralegals" to illegal immigrants under the age of 16 who are traveling without a parent. After reading this, I was initially confused. Since as long as I can remember, I have been told that the government awards everyone charged with a crime a lawyer if they need one, but here it says that for all of the illegal immigrants that are tried in immigration court, there are only 100 lawyers. And these 100 lawyers can only represent children. As it turns out, if you are not a US citizen, then you don't recieve the "benefit" of a lawyer (Semple).

Personally, I consider the right to legal represantation to be a basic human right, and I thought most Americans did too. But maybe, people believe that legal representation is the right of American citizens,  but for everyone else our government accuses of a crime, it's "benefit"that non-citizens do not deserve. Maybe.

But, my guess would be that, if you surveyed Americans and asked "Is the right to a lawyer a basic human right?", the result would be an overwhelming yes. But, if you asked "Should illegal immigrants facing deportation be granted a lawyer?", you would see significant amount of people who answered no. In this way, I think that this American value contradicts many American's opinions and actions.

One such American is Mark Krikorian, the executive director of the Center for Immigration Studies. He argues,“The broader message [of this new immigration plan] is that we don’t take our immigration laws seriously" (Semple). I agree that we don't take immigration laws seriously, but maybe not in the same way. Because serious to me means that we don't just believe in our rights, but we extend them to all people accused of a crime by the US government. In fact, I think that even after this plan is put into place, our immigration laws won't be "serious" enough. After all, "since october, more than 47,000 children traveling without parents have been caught" (Semple). How are 100 lawyers supposed to give legal representation to all those kids? And harder still, how will they give good legal representation to those kids? Additionally, why should families and adults not be apointed lawyers as well? It is downright unfair to make the right to a lawyer some twisted type of lottery, and we, as Americans, need to start standing up for the rights we supposedly believe in.

War Zone: Poverty

While listening to This American Life this morning, I stumbled upon act two of the eye opening of an segment "Doppelgängers". The segment consists of two interviews conducted by Alex Kotlowitz; who you may know as the author of There Are No Children Here or the producer of the award winning documentary The Interrupters. Kotlowitz decided to conduct the two interviews after hearing about a program at Drexel University in Philadelphia offering counseling for PTSD symptoms (something most Americans would associate solely with war veterans) to people from inner-city neighborhoods.

In these two interviews, Kotlowitz compares the life of a war veteran from Afghanistan (Brandon Caro) to the life of someone growing up in a rough neighborhood in north Philadelphia (Curtis Jefferson). Some striking similarities were found. The first similarity was that they both could never let their guard down. They also had both seen people be killed, as well as been severely injured themselves. Traumatic experiences like this have taken a toll on both interviewee's mental health. In fact, their mental health was so terribly damaged that both of them attempted suicide.

The similarities kept coming, but what I found to be even more striking than the similarities, was the main difference. Brandon was able to come home from that stress filled, high intensity lifestyle, but Curtis still lives in the same neighborhood. After being shot 5 times Curtis now has to walk bent over and he fears that this sign of weakness will make him the target of violence and crime that continues to ravage his neighborhood. So I'll offer you the same question Kotlowitz does: Can Curtis' post traumatic stress really be considered post?

I would argue that considering Curtis has to live constantly looking over his shoulder, and continues to see violence, his traumatic stress is no way "post".


So if there are neighborhoods on American soil that can cause people to have on-going traumatic stress, usually associated with war-zones, I wonder why we are spending 20% of the federal budget, a staggering $689 billion, on Defense and International Security Assistance each year. It seems to me that the government should spend a little less money trying to build up an absurdly large arsenal of weapons to supposedly prevent war, and should spend a little more money helping to end the war-zone like conditions that some Americans have to face everyday. To quote hip-hop legend Mos Def, "69 billion in the last 20 years, spent on national defense but folks still live in fear" (from "Mathematics" released in 1999).

Now, to be clear, I'm not saying that instead of focusing on enemies abroad we should look for/create enemies in our own country and start something like, say, a war on drugs? This war, which, by the way, costs the federal government at least $100 billion every year. Instead, I'm saying we should increase the amount of money we spend on things like education (2% of the federal budget) and safety net programs (12% of the federal budget); things that will help people break the cycle of poverty and stay out of prison, rather than keep them in poverty and get them into prison. If our government changed the way they spend their citizen's tax dollars in this way, it would change the lives of many Americans who are in most desperate need of change.

The Effects of a Silent Prejudice

While listening to good ol' NPR a while back, I came across a fascinating segment: titled, "For People of Color a Housing Market Partially Hidden From View", this segment brings to light the hidden racism of the housing market. It cites a study, conducted by the Department of Housing and Urban Development and the Urban Institute (a nonpartisan think tank in Washington), that found the following data:

1. Black renters learned about 11 percent fewer rental units, and black homebuyers were shown about a fifth fewer homes.
2. Asian renters learned about 7 percent fewer rental units, and Asian homebuyers saw about a fifth fewer homes.
3. Latino renters learned about 12 percent fewer units. (Interestingly, the study found that there was not a statistically significant difference in the way whites and Latino homebuyers were treated.)

In addition to this, whites were often offered lower rents than their minority counterparts. Clearly, it can be concluded that discrimination exists in the housing market. The real question is, what is the effect of this discrimination? 

Well to begin with, it makes housing less affordable for minorities. As stated previously in rental units the price is often simply more expensive for minorities. In addition to this, fewer housing options means that housing can be more expensive.

One less obvious effect that comes from discrimination in the housing market, is the effect it can have on a kid's education. As a resident of the Chicago land area I know that public schools in the northern suburbs are often ranked higher educationally than inner-city public schools. As you can see from the demographics map below the northern suburbs are almost entirely white. This means that white realtors may not offer as many possible housing options in the white northern suburbs as actually exist; thus, not giving minorities an equal chance to enroll at some of the higher ranked schools.

As you can clearly see, even today, the words of Malcom X in his 1964 "Appeal to African Heads of State" reigns true, "America preaches integration, but practices segregation". Although we have come along way since then, it seems that segregation (and the inequality that inevitably follows) still lingers. The only difference is that now it's harder to see, that is, unless you look closely.

Social Mobility... (For Some)

“a limousine passed us… in which sat three modish negroes… I laughed… ‘Anything can happen now’... I thought” -The Great Gatsby, page 69.

In modern times, many Americans like to believe in Mr. Carraway’s comical thought that “Anything can happen” or as my father has often told me “Anyone can be successful.” That's the American dream, is it not? People usually cite examples of wealthy or powerful minorities, such as our current president. But, in reality the minorities that make it into the upper (or often even middle) class are exceptions, and the majority of minorities have very little, if any, social mobility. The factors that lead to this lack of social mobility are, discrimination in the criminal “justice” system, and a subconscious, as well as, conscious, racism held by many Americans.

As the tragic events that took place in Ferguson made clear to many Americans, discrimination is still very prevalent in law enforcement. For example, “45% of non-whites are frisked when pulled over compared to only 29% of whites, even whites are 70% more likely to carry a weapon”. This racial profiling by law enforcement results in more incarcerations for minorities. A Huffington post article confirms this saying, “One in every three black males born today can expect to go to prison at some point in their life, compared with one in every six Latino males, and one in every 17 white males” (Knafo). Racial profiling by law enforcement results in more incarcerations for minorities, and being incarcerated undoubtedly keeps you in the lower-class. Thus, we can conclude that the myth of justice being blind was not, and is not, true in America. Which, results in lower-class minorities staying in the lower class.

In addition to the discrimination of law enforcement, discrimination by everyday American citizens also hampers the social mobility of minorities. In research for an older post I found that minority homebuyers are offered roughly 10% fewer units than their white counterparts. Additionally, minorities were often offered a higher rent. Both the higher rent, and secrecy when it comes to properties in certain neighborhoods is because realtors want to keep minorities out of the wealthier white neighborhoods. One of the consequences of this is allow parents to give their kids the best education because the schools in the North Shore receive much more funding than the CPS. As you can see from the image below, this secret form of segregation unfortunately seems to be working.

From the demographics map on the left, one can clearly see just how shockingly divided Chicago really is by race. I took the liberty of drawing in some lines to make these divisions stand out. And after overlaying this map of divisions on to the map of income on the right, I found that race undoubtedly correlated to income. The predominantly white northern suburbs are blanketed in red dots (100k+) while the predominantly black communities to the south and west have a clear trend of dark blue (20k-). If America was as equal as many American’s would like to believe, then why do we see such clear divisions between different races and different classes, and furthermore, why do we see a correlation between the two?

While the racism of realtors is a very conscious decision to keep minorities out of wealthy white neighborhoods, a more subconscious racism exists in the minds of many Americans. The article Professors are Prejudiced, Too showed that professors are more likely to respond to an email from a white student than a minority student. According to the data from the article, “87 percent of white males received a response compared with just 62 percent of all females and minorities combined” (although the data includes information on gender, focus on information on race for the purposes of this paper). What’s even more shocking is that it made no difference whether it was a black student emailing a black professor or a white professor, they were discriminated against regardless. This leads me to believe that it couldn’t have been a conscious choice to discriminate, rather they didn’t respond to the students of racial minority because they subconsciously view minorities as less than, and thus don’t feel like they have a responsibility to respond. Evidently, many Americans identify a person’s class by their race, and treat them accordingly. 

Many minorities cannot rise from the lower-class due to a number of factors in American society that encourage inequality and discrimination rather than social mobility. Chris Rock illustrates this, in a quote from his stand up routine Kill the Messenger, "I live in a place called Alpine New Jersey. My house costs millions of dollars. In my neighborhood there are four black people: me, Mary J. Blige, one of the greatest R&B singers to ever walk the earth, Jay-Z, one of the greatest rappers to ever live, and Eddie Murphy, one of the funniest actors to ever do it. Do you know what the white man who lives next door to me does for a living? He's a fucking dentist." So while yes, the passengers of the limousine in The Great Gatsby, the President, a number of celebrities, and many other American citizens of various racial minorities have achieved success, they have done so despite the hidden yet powerful forces of discrimination that continue to hold minorities in this country back even today.