Hip Hops Betrayal of black women analytical summary
Cheyenne Gaines
Dione Sibley
Freshman Comp 12:30- 1:50
Hip-Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women Analytical Summary
In Hip-Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women published in Z Communications online magazine July 1, 2006, Jennifer Mclune responds to Kevin Powell’s Notes of a Hip Hop Head by vividly expressing to feminist and African American women that “Hip Hop owes its success to the ideology of woman hating. It creates, perpetuates, and reaps the rewards of objectification.”
In Powell’s quote he begins to defend male artists by blaming their behavior on socioeconomic conditions, and by comparing their lyrics to that of how black men were looked at during the 1960’s. Mclune feels as though Powell is merely using his “socio-economic explanation for the sexism in hip hop” (Mclune 1) as a way to silence feminist critiques of the culture. Mclune feels as though Powell is turning a blind eye to the fact that women are also raised in poor and violent environments as well as men. Women “…have yet to produce the same negative and hateful representation of black men that male rappers are capable of making against against women” states Mclune (Mclune 1). As you get deeper into the article you find that not only does Mclune feel that there is a war between African American men in hip hop versus women, but also there is a war between the White man in hip hop versus the African American woman. “Yet we all know that wealthy white boys can create the same hateful and violent music as poor black boys” Mclune argues (Mclune 1). As long as both races share the same common enemy people will look past the slander of women. Mclune argues that the women should not be diminished in response to the war that has been declared, so she now feels it is time to fight back. Mclune makes sure the readers know that “those who do have to fight to be heard above the dominant chorus of misogyny” (Mclune 2).
Talid Kweli amongst other artists was one of the few called out in the article for his uplifting
Dione Sibley
Freshman Comp 12:30- 1:50
Hip-Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women Analytical Summary
In Hip-Hop’s Betrayal of Black Women published in Z Communications online magazine July 1, 2006, Jennifer Mclune responds to Kevin Powell’s Notes of a Hip Hop Head by vividly expressing to feminist and African American women that “Hip Hop owes its success to the ideology of woman hating. It creates, perpetuates, and reaps the rewards of objectification.”
In Powell’s quote he begins to defend male artists by blaming their behavior on socioeconomic conditions, and by comparing their lyrics to that of how black men were looked at during the 1960’s. Mclune feels as though Powell is merely using his “socio-economic explanation for the sexism in hip hop” (Mclune 1) as a way to silence feminist critiques of the culture. Mclune feels as though Powell is turning a blind eye to the fact that women are also raised in poor and violent environments as well as men. Women “…have yet to produce the same negative and hateful representation of black men that male rappers are capable of making against against women” states Mclune (Mclune 1). As you get deeper into the article you find that not only does Mclune feel that there is a war between African American men in hip hop versus women, but also there is a war between the White man in hip hop versus the African American woman. “Yet we all know that wealthy white boys can create the same hateful and violent music as poor black boys” Mclune argues (Mclune 1). As long as both races share the same common enemy people will look past the slander of women. Mclune argues that the women should not be diminished in response to the war that has been declared, so she now feels it is time to fight back. Mclune makes sure the readers know that “those who do have to fight to be heard above the dominant chorus of misogyny” (Mclune 2).
Talid Kweli amongst other artists was one of the few called out in the article for his uplifting
Cited: http://zcomm.org/zmagazine/hip-hop-and-rsquo-s-betrayal-of-black-women-by-jennifer-mclune/