I liked the whole panel but especially liked the comments of Dr. Douglas (a school psychologist) and Mr. Ratcliff because they were very educational and had a lot of insight. The panel felt like it was just black people having a real discussion amongst ourselves. But, I think we could have done more to talk about the solution instead of just the problems.
--Giselle
When I came into the panel I thought that it was going to be a "me against them" conversation. I thought the older adults on the panel were going to be like, "Hip hop is wrong! It is our way or the highway!" But that wasn't the case at all. A woman in the audience started a discussion on dress codes in high schools that I disagreed with because I feel like people place too much emphasis on this and it has nothing to do with the real problems. I agree with Giselle in that we need to be more solution focused but we covered a lot of topics and the conversation was thought provoking. There were a couple of times where I felt as if I was getting angry and couldn’t articulate anymore. But then some one from BlackLight would step in and say what I wanted to say anyway. I wish there had been more kids in the audience. --Br-yee
I felt that the panel was really eye opening and a really good experience. No one was saying that hip hop was bad but that "artists" need to learn how to express themselves in a different manner and extend their vocabulary --lIke Darrell, a Willow Run High School student who wrote and performed his own rap at the end of the discussion to the beat of "This is Why I'm Hot." I think most of all I liked the realness of the panel. Nobody held back. --Rijke
1 comment:
one of the self inflicted stereotypes on the part of black people is that we allow ourselves to be defined by the kind of music we listen to. Music can be a rewarding part of life in many aspects, but in no way does it totally define a human being. Young people too often get caught up in what they feel is the thing to do, what makes them part of the "scene", or is peer-approved coolness. The real key to a positive definition of self that we want to display to those around us is found in the choices we make. To say that all hip hop music has no redeeming value would be as narrow and prejudicial as those who also lump human beings into the same basket labled ignorance and bigotry. The fact of the matter is,though, that too much of the hip hop music is disrespectful of self, demeaning to our african American culture, and grossly insulting and demeaning to African American women - the very heart of our culture. Perhaps we expect too much from our black brothers when we consider the brainwashing number that has been done on them in America. The horror of embracing having been" locked up" as a right of passage, is as causual as "bustin' a cap" in your own brother while shuffling along the city streets trying to keep your pants from falling down. What the hell is going on! Well, the fact is that -regardless of circumstances that most all black folk contend with - we make choices. Are some of them difficult?, are some of them filled with pressure and confusion? That - like it or not - is what life is all about. Your music preference is a choice. In a politically charged society this choice can also be difficult. When you hear and analyze the sounds of hip hop, it becomes your choice to embrace what you hear or to distance yourself from it. The lyrics and the message will spell it out for you. If that message is offensive and degrading, then the choice to distance yourself from it becomes the obligation to speak out against it.
Dad
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