Hip-hop, gangsta rap 21st-century scourge
By Gregory Clay
www.pasadenastarnews.com/...91,00.html
THIS may seem blasphemous, but we must do it anyway --strictly to illustrate a point.
Seven years after his death, most readers probably never would expect to see Frank Sinatra's name in the same sentence with black gangsta rappers. This topic is about language (actually perceived racial slurs) and rules of engagement.
Let's start with the black valet. George Jacobs, who served as Sinatra's valet from 1953 to 1968, wrote a book, with author William Stadiem, titled, "Mr. S: My Life with Frank Sinatra."
The book, as much introspective as impudent, explores, in several instances, Sinatra's views on race, interspersed among a multitude of other subjects.
Turn to the bottom of Page 55. The passage from Jacobs reads: "... Being black was never discussed, nor did it seem to be considered. He (Sinatra) never used the N' word, except to complain that someone like (movie producer) Sam Spiegel was treating him like a n-----' ..."
The link to the gangsta rappers: The N-word is part of their everyday vernacular, an integral element of their depraved lyrics.
If Sinatra were alive in 2005 in his prime, and his private conversations on race with members of the "Rat Pack" were leaked to the media today, he would be publicly vilified. In fact, The Revs. Jesse and Big Al probably would call for a national boycott of the old Sands casino, where Mr. S often performed in Las Vegas. But the revolving reverends don't do the same for today's gangsta rappers, who essentially are vile voyeurs promoting irresponsible behavior.
Wonder why the Dynamic Duo doesn't take action?
In Sinatra's case, there is a mitigating factor -- at least according to his valet -- in the use of the N-word. Jacobs' wrote: "He (Sinatra) would use it (the N-word) as an adjective of oppression, but never as an oppressive label. He wouldn't stand for that. He saw himself as a member of an oppressed minority and had total empathy for anyone who was similarly situated. ..."
Many bewildered observers would ask how can the lofty Sinatra view himself through that prism of oppression -- at least privately? Remember, black folk historically haven't been the only racial or ethnic group that has faced discrimination or intolerance in the United States. For example, baseball great Joe DiMaggio, who like Mr. S was an Italian-American, initially faced an ethnic backlash of name-calling and insensitivity when he joined the major leagues in 1936.
Still, you can bet, despite Jacobs' context, that many in today's society would accuse Sinatra of being a racist. Flat out.
Some are probably spouting the same blather about Larry Cochell, the etched-in-stone University of Oklahoma baseball coach who resigned recently because he used the "N-word" when discussing one of his black players during an off-camera -- supposedly off-the-record -- chat with two broadcasters from ESPN.
From all appearances, it didn't seem Cochell, who is white, was malicious in his intent, when he reportedly said, in part, of the black player, "There's no (N-word) in him." But Cochell undoubtedly was careless and negligent, especially with the media.
Which brings us back to the gratuitous gangstas, who use the N-word more often than Ku Klux Klan members, and in a more cavalier fashion than Cochell.
How often have many of us jostled down crowded, urban sidewalks against the backdrop of blaring rap lyrics emanating from a snazzy vehicle with midnight-dark tinted windows? Busy city streets and public rap music -- and the N-word --all day long.
However, on a daily basis, the rappers -- and music listeners -- proceed unchallenged on their choice of language, most of all by black people.
As Jacobs says of Mr. S, "Where race was concerned, the man was colorblind, even if today he'd be viewed as criminally insensitive."
But the gangstas keep rapping their lousy lyrics essentially without fear of recrimination. Why aren't they viewed as "criminally insensitive" as Mr. S would be?
Why don't they resign, as Cochell did.
To the gangsta rappers, the N-word is One Big Joke -- a perverse form of Comedy Central in gangsta-rap form. The bottom line in this destructive genre of music is simply this: Hip-hop and gangsta rap are the scourge of the 21st century for black folk, especially our impressionable youth. It's the New Slavery of 2005.
This slavery is more mental than physical, which makes it more insidious because it destroys the mind. This music is akin to slavery because it is hell-bent on keeping black folk enslaved in racial stereotypes.
We see the gangsta videos on shameful display on Black Entertainment Television, a travesty of a corporation. The videos, plain and simple, are infomercials, steeped in stereotypes, that glorify violence-mongering, alcohol-drinking, hedonism-loving, gold-teeth-and-bandanna-wearing, illiterate-talking, sexual predator-imitating, bling-bling-buying black males, replete with half-naked, oversized-rump-shaking black women.
Yet the rappers proceed with impunity from their choices of images and language. Some misguided souls, such as political comedian Bill Maher, have intimated that rappers use the N-word as a way of de-stigmatizing the racial epithet, sort of like taking the sting out of a killer bee. The argument goes something like this: By using the N-word, the speaker is negating the power of the oppressor (i.e. slave master) who uses it to promote his/her superiority over racially inferior black people.
First of all, do you really think these gangstas are thinking that deeply in a historical and sociological context about institutional slavery 400 years ago when it comes to their lyrics and music? One seriously doubts they have delved into the messages provided by noted black socio-cultural thinkers such as Drs. John Hope Franklin and Henry Louis Gates.
No way. To them, it's simply that Comedy Central-like Big Joke designed to further their own lexicon of gibberish.
Some have argued black people should be granted a pass when using the N-word because some of them, i.e. rappers and their young and misguided following, view the epithet as a term of endearment or empowerment.
How ridiculous is that.
People have been killed, lynched and murdered over that word. Remember the Civil Rights Movement of the late 1950s and 1960s?
Others, such as Cochell, have lost their jobs over this word.
And still, the rappers get a free pass when they utter vicious epithets publicly -- with immunity.
The question remains: Who's making the rules of engagement here?
Gregory Clay is assistant sports editor at Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service. He can be reached at gclaykrtinfo.com.
By Gregory Clay
www.pasadenastarnews.com/...91,00.html
THIS may seem blasphemous, but we must do it anyway --strictly to illustrate a point.
Seven years after his death, most readers probably never would expect to see Frank Sinatra's name in the same sentence with black gangsta rappers. This topic is about language (actually perceived racial slurs) and rules of engagement.
Let's start with the black valet. George Jacobs, who served as Sinatra's valet from 1953 to 1968, wrote a book, with author William Stadiem, titled, "Mr. S: My Life with Frank Sinatra."
The book, as much introspective as impudent, explores, in several instances, Sinatra's views on race, interspersed among a multitude of other subjects.
Turn to the bottom of Page 55. The passage from Jacobs reads: "... Being black was never discussed, nor did it seem to be considered. He (Sinatra) never used the N' word, except to complain that someone like (movie producer) Sam Spiegel was treating him like a n-----' ..."
The link to the gangsta rappers: The N-word is part of their everyday vernacular, an integral element of their depraved lyrics.
If Sinatra were alive in 2005 in his prime, and his private conversations on race with members of the "Rat Pack" were leaked to the media today, he would be publicly vilified. In fact, The Revs. Jesse and Big Al probably would call for a national boycott of the old Sands casino, where Mr. S often performed in Las Vegas. But the revolving reverends don't do the same for today's gangsta rappers, who essentially are vile voyeurs promoting irresponsible behavior.
Wonder why the Dynamic Duo doesn't take action?
In Sinatra's case, there is a mitigating factor -- at least according to his valet -- in the use of the N-word. Jacobs' wrote: "He (Sinatra) would use it (the N-word) as an adjective of oppression, but never as an oppressive label. He wouldn't stand for that. He saw himself as a member of an oppressed minority and had total empathy for anyone who was similarly situated. ..."
Many bewildered observers would ask how can the lofty Sinatra view himself through that prism of oppression -- at least privately? Remember, black folk historically haven't been the only racial or ethnic group that has faced discrimination or intolerance in the United States. For example, baseball great Joe DiMaggio, who like Mr. S was an Italian-American, initially faced an ethnic backlash of name-calling and insensitivity when he joined the major leagues in 1936.
Still, you can bet, despite Jacobs' context, that many in today's society would accuse Sinatra of being a racist. Flat out.
Some are probably spouting the same blather about Larry Cochell, the etched-in-stone University of Oklahoma baseball coach who resigned recently because he used the "N-word" when discussing one of his black players during an off-camera -- supposedly off-the-record -- chat with two broadcasters from ESPN.
From all appearances, it didn't seem Cochell, who is white, was malicious in his intent, when he reportedly said, in part, of the black player, "There's no (N-word) in him." But Cochell undoubtedly was careless and negligent, especially with the media.
Which brings us back to the gratuitous gangstas, who use the N-word more often than Ku Klux Klan members, and in a more cavalier fashion than Cochell.
How often have many of us jostled down crowded, urban sidewalks against the backdrop of blaring rap lyrics emanating from a snazzy vehicle with midnight-dark tinted windows? Busy city streets and public rap music -- and the N-word --all day long.
However, on a daily basis, the rappers -- and music listeners -- proceed unchallenged on their choice of language, most of all by black people.
As Jacobs says of Mr. S, "Where race was concerned, the man was colorblind, even if today he'd be viewed as criminally insensitive."
But the gangstas keep rapping their lousy lyrics essentially without fear of recrimination. Why aren't they viewed as "criminally insensitive" as Mr. S would be?
Why don't they resign, as Cochell did.
To the gangsta rappers, the N-word is One Big Joke -- a perverse form of Comedy Central in gangsta-rap form. The bottom line in this destructive genre of music is simply this: Hip-hop and gangsta rap are the scourge of the 21st century for black folk, especially our impressionable youth. It's the New Slavery of 2005.
This slavery is more mental than physical, which makes it more insidious because it destroys the mind. This music is akin to slavery because it is hell-bent on keeping black folk enslaved in racial stereotypes.
We see the gangsta videos on shameful display on Black Entertainment Television, a travesty of a corporation. The videos, plain and simple, are infomercials, steeped in stereotypes, that glorify violence-mongering, alcohol-drinking, hedonism-loving, gold-teeth-and-bandanna-wearing, illiterate-talking, sexual predator-imitating, bling-bling-buying black males, replete with half-naked, oversized-rump-shaking black women.
Yet the rappers proceed with impunity from their choices of images and language. Some misguided souls, such as political comedian Bill Maher, have intimated that rappers use the N-word as a way of de-stigmatizing the racial epithet, sort of like taking the sting out of a killer bee. The argument goes something like this: By using the N-word, the speaker is negating the power of the oppressor (i.e. slave master) who uses it to promote his/her superiority over racially inferior black people.
First of all, do you really think these gangstas are thinking that deeply in a historical and sociological context about institutional slavery 400 years ago when it comes to their lyrics and music? One seriously doubts they have delved into the messages provided by noted black socio-cultural thinkers such as Drs. John Hope Franklin and Henry Louis Gates.
No way. To them, it's simply that Comedy Central-like Big Joke designed to further their own lexicon of gibberish.
Some have argued black people should be granted a pass when using the N-word because some of them, i.e. rappers and their young and misguided following, view the epithet as a term of endearment or empowerment.
How ridiculous is that.
People have been killed, lynched and murdered over that word. Remember the Civil Rights Movement of the late 1950s and 1960s?
Others, such as Cochell, have lost their jobs over this word.
And still, the rappers get a free pass when they utter vicious epithets publicly -- with immunity.
The question remains: Who's making the rules of engagement here?
Gregory Clay is assistant sports editor at Knight Ridder/Tribune News Service. He can be reached at gclaykrtinfo.com.
