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It’s In NY #7

N!@@as, B!tches, and H*s! Oh My!: Sharpton will march against Record Labels!
What would Hip-Hop be with out n!@@as, b!tches, and h*s. It would be fine. People would still love hip-hop, like I love hip-hop. Just yesterday I was dancing like Clyde Drexler, and singing like Sanjaya to It’s Me Snitches’s by Swizz Beatz. But, I digress. I am conflicted by this issue. As a black woman I should be offended by certain terms, but sometimes I am, and sometimes I am not. Do I get tired of seeing women’s derrieres in videos? Yes. Do I get tired of hearing the word ho? Yes. Do I want to hear beeps in the middle of my favorite artist’s song? No.

While attending Rev. Al Sharpton’s Ninth National Action Network Convention I could feel myself swaying to the beat of the feet of protest against Hip-Hop. Rev. Al Sharpton planned to honor Mr. L.A. Reid, a phenomenal philanthropist and President of Def Jam, with the James Brown Award. Critics quickly blasted Rev. Sharpton, and others who called for the firing of Don Imus, for not applying the same level of criticism to rappers and record labels that pay them for using words many deem to be offensive towards women and ethnic minorities. The Rev. Al Sharpton who often appears on hip-hop radio to deliver his message, is demanding record label executives convince artists to stop producing hateful music. As a result the National Action Network decided not to honor Mr. Reid. On Saturday, April 21, Sharpton will “march against indecency.” The NAN will take on all record labels to show consistency in their battle against misogyny and liberal use of racial epithets.

I asked Mr. Sharpton what should the record executives, who were at a closed door meeting to address the controversy, be discussing. “They should be talking about on how to respect the women in our community and every community. That’s all. We are not telling them to censor artists, [and] don’t censor us. A lot of people that have spoken up now saying that they don’t want our women called out of our names” Rev. Sharpton stated, “I’m not marching against the rappers; I’m marching against the record companies. The record companies are telling these young guys and girls if you don’t do this you can’t get a deal. I’m going to the source. I didn’t go to [Don] Imus’s house; I went straight to CBS and MSNBC.” Members of the audience and the panel concluded that hip-hop shed all blacks in a bad light. The most powerful people in hip-hop were expected to respond to the massive assault on their industry at a press conference today in mid-town Manhattan. However, when I arrived I was informed that it was postponed. The Hip-Hop Summit Action Network said that, “We are postponing today’s press availability as our meeting is still in progress. As you know, this is a complex issue that involves gender, race, culture and artistic expression. Everyone assembled today takes this issue very seriously and our dialogue is ongoing.”

The former New York City Mayor Ed Koch attended the convention along with, Howard Dean the Chairman DNC, Megan Smolenyak the Chief Family Historian, Ancestry.Com, and Rabbi Marc Shneir of the Foundation for Ethnic Understanding for the discussion on improving race relations in America. Ed Koch could do little to please the audience as he felt that Don Imus shouldn’t have been fired. “Spoken like a true racist,” someone yelled at the former Mayor. Howard Dean delivered a heartfelt speech on race relations, how he has personally improved diversity in the Democratic Party, and the failure of the Bush Administration to support those who were devastated by Hurricane Katrina. Dean attributed the highest number of young black men voting in history to the “Vote or Die” voter registration campaign led by P. Diddy.

Feeling empowered, I hop into my car to go home and turn up Kanye’s remix to “Throw Some D’s .” Just when I thought that I was out, Kanye pulls me back in. Pretty soon I Walk It Out as I sit on the West Side Highway. What’s a girl who loves hip-hop to do.

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By Stephanie Taylor on 4/19/2007[read on] [2 comments]

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