This is a thread I jumped in on over at Rachels Tavern. I 'll just leave you with my comments:Naro% said,
June 24, 2006 @ 10:06 am
This Uber Mockery that is appearing in nothing new… The conditions of African based Culture have been desacrated throughout time. Funny the european brand/version made its way into the conversation, as on many occasions I have had Germans, French, Spanish, you name the nationality explain to me the specific story behind their particular cultural attack on the African Culture. I didnt know you got a pass for some shit happening a long time ago, or that its been passed down from generation to generation, whatever… save that stuff for those who might entertain the sheer stupidity of your “argument”. So as you may already know this has lead many of my european friends to think that the racial climate in the US has shaped my perceptions, and that “they” dont have those kinds of problems there (Paris riots anyone?). To which I laugh and then explain that WS/Racism is GLOBAL. The images provided in the story not only degrade perceptions about people of African descent, they promote the euro-justification (the why you so sensitive US counter part) of it being a tradition. There is nothing remotely funny about this shit, and if you wanna see how funny its is, set up shop on lets say Crenshaw and Rosecrans and pull this shit or anywhere that people of color congregate. The only funny thing you are going to see is the ensuing ass whuppin that is going to pop off.
As for the whole Eddie/Dave and whoever else made it onto tv and did the ole “Play YT” scene Rachels Dad had a pretty good summation: “You don’t see Black people paint their face entirely White with and say things like “Enron Looter” “President of the United States.”
But it goes even deeper than this because it is a socio-psycological practice that has been reproduced globally.
Remember those old time ads from Life magazine? They read like this:
Look as the grinng kneegro, so happy, so carefree blah blah.
The grinning knegro (Sambo, big red lips cartoon)=Ojectified distortion of African culture
Distorting culture is a vital weapon in the WS aresenal, so on this point I am going to have to say that the “remnants” arent really “remnants” at all, they have just changed. while I am not saying that the mockery of hip hop style falls into this arena, white people should know that “situational WS” (see my other comment for an explanation) is real. Meaning that posers come in all shapes, sizes and colors, but it is interesting to see the sheer extent of the mockery that goes on when white people want to “joke around” at the expense of “black” people, and hip hop is an excellent tool to do this. Hell I hear it everyday on TV, when black atheletes are heralded as being “articulate”, or “so down to earth”, “humble”, and others as being “Problems” or “distractions”. Now I love me some nascar (dont ask!!) but never once have I heard the converstion on Jeff Gordon, Tony Stewart, Rusty, Dale JR., Saddler, Martin, Mears and all the rest of the Nextel crew turn towards their ability to communicate effectively. Hell Tony Stewart has dual personalities (damn near) and you dont hear a damn thing about how his attitude affects the game, or his abilty to speak in a coherant manner etc, etc. There is a standard when it comes to mocking cultures and it is evident that these subtle “micro-Insults” (google it) are not intended for white people.
Holla Back Son,
;)
NARO%
