Gender Talk: Chapter 7

In the final chapter I am going to look at in Gender Talk, Cole and Sheftall look at the world of hip-hop and the ways that the culture and the music are damaging to Black manhood. This is one of the most problematic areas in the shaping of Black masculinity, in my opinion. There are rappers on television and on the radio talking about beating women, drinking 40s, doing drugs, and killing people, and with each word, they are helping to reiterate the stereotypes that have been placed on the Black community. Not only do some hip-hop artists perpetuate stereotypes, they also encourage the youth watching them to do the same. There is this type of inescapable cycle that the Black male gets himself in when he chooses to learn about masculinity from hip-hop music. Certain types of hip-hop, I do not even want to call it hip-hop, is aimed towards objectifying women and glorifying rape and violence. The reason I say that I do not want to call the type of music discussed in this chapter “hip-hop” is because these rappers are not true artists, and they are what give the hip-hop culture a bad name. Hip-hop is and is supposed to be a way to express the pain of the struggle that people have gone through, it is a way to create a connection between listeners. The problem that Cole and Sheftall are addressing is that hip-hop’s entire makeup has changed and it is now an outlet for people to discuss tasteless things such as rape and “making paper.” Gone are the days where rappers, like Common, who were poetic in their approach. Now the rappers who infiltrate the radio are rappers who talk about things like “Then take the bitch out on the highway and drag her until she’s damn near dead. Then take your pistol and shoot her, Right through her motherfucken head” (192). These lyrics get sung at concerts without giving much thought to the meaning. Other times, people know the meaning, but they just don’t care that it degrades women and shames the name of the Black man. Cole and Sheftall highlight the role of the Black women in the male dominated hip-hop world. They discuss not only the ways that these women are dehumanized, but also the ways that women contribute to these demoralizing practices. Cole and Sheftall describe this woman more closely by stating, “the women many hip-hop songs celebrate are valued primarily for satisfying their men sexually and providing whatever support they need. Tragically, many young women even pass the ultimate test of loyalty by endangering themselves and their futures, including the risk of incarceration, through drug use, burglary, or prostitution, all in the name of ‘love’”(198). What is very interesting is that a portion of the Black male population is very adamant about Black women belonging to them, and only them. I once had a guy in my African American Women Studies class who frankly admitted to wanting to vomit whenever he saw a white man with one of “his women.” He further stated that his “community” in Oakland, CA all felt the same sentiment towards interracial relationships. So my problem is this: with rap music encouraging the disrespect of black women they are also giving their White audience the permission to disrespect “their” women too. I am not saying that it is not White male’s responsibility to know that this treatment is wrong, but I am placing the blame somewhat on the rap music that supports the misogyny of the Black woman.

Cole and Sheftall discuss blaxploitation films as well, and their roles in shaping the way women were thought of. The black women were always portrayed as “helpless, hopeless, pitiful victims, always at the disposal of a powerful hypersexual Black male figure, such as Shaft” (201). These films, as well as more modern day media, such as hip-hop, reinforce that women are inferior to men and also glorify the hypersexual, overly violent male as the face for Black masculinity. What’s more is that these rappers believe that they are doing something on their own and independent of the “white man,” yet they continuously carry on the idea of some in the white culture, that they are violent, ignorant, incapable of being a family man, and animalistic. Even more important is the use of the “N” word in rap music. My best friend, who is white, recently asked me why Black artists use the “N” word in their music, but then get angry when white people say it. She said “aren’t they giving the white population permission to call them that, since they call themselves that?” I completely agreed with her, I mean, I understand psychologically why Black people use the “N” word-as a way to take something hurtful and turn it in to something they can take ownership over, but it is ridiculous and stupid to expect that by using the word, people are going to understand the psychological meaning behind why you’re doing it. Calling one another the “N” word tells the dominant culture that it is essentially okay to dominate Black people. While it is not fair that one person or a small group of people has to act for the entire community, things go in our society the way. When a portion of the Black male population acts in a violent and ignorant way, then the dominant culture gets reinforcement that ALL Black males are violent and uneducated.

Learning about Black masculinity has been a complex idea, to say the least. It is complex in that it has been created out of slavery and this need to prove oneself as a man, not a dehumanized being. The want to reinforce masculinity gets taken to another level because a lot of times, that desire for recognition comes in the form of aggression, which lets those in the white culture who believe stereotypes about Black males, say “I told you so.” The Black men that Cole and Sheftall discuss in their book believes that by going out and rapping about beating bitches and killing white cops, that they are asserting their masculinity and also their originality. They believe that their behavior is important, but not so much that it will influence society negatively. Maybe they even believe that society cannot hold a more negative view of Black masculinity, so it does not matter what they do, they will not hurt it any. But there is the problem, the aspect of giving up because the dominant culture has already “decided” who one is. By giving into those decisions on identity, the Black man is giving up power. We, and I say we as someone who is a part of the Black community, have a duty to challenge the ideas about our race. I am not saying that not to be emotional, having feelings about injustice is okay, just target that anger in a way that does not hurt or silence someone else. Instead of rapping tastelessly about raping women, which has nothing to do with the Black man’s struggle, write about the hardships that have been faced and how one can overcome it. Remember that people, especially young people, are listening to the music and are going to adopt some of the ideas that are being spoken. Paint, do not kill. Attend college and make something of yourself that challenges the “stereotypical Black man.” Stop making decisions for recognition, and start making choices for personal growth. Most of all, stop teaching Black males in their youth that they need to fight a battle that our ancestors have worked so hard for in order for us to live a positive life. We cannot waste it fighting battles, as hard as it is to do; the only way we can move forward is to move on. While I know that there are still injustices that happen every day, a person needs to stop and ask themselves, what good am I doing by picking up a gun and starting a riot?

I am finished with Gender Talk, and will move on to my exploration of masculinity in the Hispanic culture in Hombres y Machos