“What I’m saying is that there are known knowns and that there are known unknowns. But there are also unknown unknowns; things we don’t know that we don’t know.” –Gin Rummy, Boondocks, 2005
Does that quote make any sense? Maybe, maybe not, but the larger point is it makes you think. It makes you re-read the sentence a few times, think about it, analyze it, either criticize or laud it, and probably even think about it some more. The sentence could mean so many things – its all about what you take from it and how you apply it to your daily life. That’s the beauty of statements like this, which for 2+ seasons now have been inserted into episodes of The Boondocks. Its been a thought provoking series that has produced its share of critics and pundits, culturally conscious critiques and scholarly soliloquies, as well hood ni**a theories and rants. The Boondocks has been a polarizing staple in black America, because we often cling to mainstream media such as this – we’re not privy to much of it. We either love it or hate it, but the point is that we talk about and discuss it. My question is – why don’t we talk about and discuss things that are thrown at us in our daily lives, the same way we discuss this satirical series?
At this point, people expect greatness from Aaron McGruder, or at least some standard of excellence or due diligence that he owes the black community. He’s a voice of reason, dark comedy, and hard social commentary. He’s provoked us to discuss everything from politics and hip-hop, to Uncle Toms (Ruckuses) and pimps (named Slickback). When he delivers something we deem as sub-par, or even crossing the imaginary boundary we’ve given him to keep his outside the box commentary and critiques confined within, we hold him to the fire. The “It’s A Black President, Huey Freeman episode that aired Sunday was not the best of the series by far, but it garnered such emotional and passionate reactions that I was both pleasantly surprised and unfortunately disappointed. Some people got the satirical message that the Boondocks and McGruder tried to convey, while others missed the boat completely. If they did get the satirical message and didn’t respect or appreciate it, the sentiment seemed to be that it was overboard, not focused, went too far or was flat out ignorant. Everyone became a cultural critic in 140 words or less via the social networking site Twitter, and I loved that. Seeing as we use it more than any other demographic, we need to put it to good use by critically examining the serious issues in our community. But people were calling for the episode to be everything from banned to censored. There was a major uproar and concern that McGruder’s message was just lazy and ignorant, and there was a huge thought bubble over my head that said… “GUCCI?”
Gucci!
I’m all for social commentary and holding our messengers to a high standard. Aaron Mcgruder has a powerful platform and needs to always keep that in mind, as well as the standard we have for him. At the same time, we need to keep something in mind…
Hold Boondocks and similar vehicles to the fire, but while we’re doing that we need to hold all of our mainstream messengers of and to the black community to the fire as well.
Black folk love to talk about what our elite voices are or are not talking about. I personally took Rev. Jesse Jackson and other older leaders in the black community to task (with all due deference and respect) due to what I perceived as being out of touch with what the young black community needs and wants. Hell was raised when Bill Cosby criticized black parenting practices and lower class black folk back in 2004 and again in a book in 2007. We tend to get riled up when our thought leaders and scholars aren’t meeting our standards. But we’re usually disagreeing with the substance of the message, not the intent. We know they have our best interests at heart, even if personal gain and opportunity (Rev. Al Sharpton) may be perceived as more important than societal progress.
We should be questioning the intent of other messengers to and of our community as well though. Why don’t we criticize and analyze the actual messages in Hip Hop and R&B songs? Why don’t we argue that substance, and why doesn’t it rile us up? Why don’t we analyze and critique the quality and substance of black television and movie messages more? It seems as if the standard has dropped so low for the messages that are conveyed via our music and reality shows, that we don’t even think to call it to task anymore. Its just what we expect, and it doesn’t even cause debate. The closest we’ve gotten as of late was questioning the substance of Jay-Z’s Blueprint 3 lyrics, but that was mainly because of an intense infatuation with the Illuminati and Jay-Z’s possible connections to that and devil-worshipping. When Frankie and Neffe are given an even more ghetto spinoff of an already ghetto reality show, we don’t even bat an eye. It seems like Flavor Flav and Ray-J have gotten a combined 27 shows from VH1, and that, ladies and gentlemen, is a lot of coonin’, shuckin’, and jiving (not to mention begging, crying, and casual sex).
Flaaaaavor Flaaaaav
Combine those representations of black males on television with the black female representations of Nicki Minaj, the Real Housewives of Atlanta, and Basketball Wives, and we find it necessary to call for The Boondocks to cut it out and get off the air? Seems like The Boondocks is the only thing that gets us talking about more than sex, dating, athletes, music, and black men and women pursuing all of those things. If we’re going to knock Aaron McGruder’s hustle, lets knock everybody’s hustle. Call them all to task – we need to direct our criticism and lack of support in the right direction.
Don’t get it twisted… I enjoy a Jeezy verse (and mixtape, and album, and entire catalog) just like the next man, but I also recognize his and other trap rappers alike negative influence on urban youth (and the forever young). I think we need to understand that on a support scale of Flavor Flav to Barack Obama, we need to have McGruder and The Boondocks closer to the latter, and Lil Wayne closer to the former. We get so caught up in the celebrity, the allure, the beats, the rhymes and the image, that we blindly accept the message and in turn, make it cool for black youth to accept those messages as well. While I can distinguish between trappin’ and rappin’, my little brother can’t.
Because Aaron McGruder has given us a superb body of work with his first two seasons of his groundbreaking series, we expect him to be above ignorance. Even though his show is satirical, many people don’t understand the concept of satire and its intended effects. It is indeed on him to keep that in mind when he’s delivering episodes to black and white America. But we expect great things from him, and we need to start expecting great things from all of our messengers, not just the ones we think should be doing them. Lets make them all do better.
Nicki Minaj has clearly stated that her persona is nothing more than a character. More young black people will be affected by her than Uncle Ruckus. So where are our calls to ban her music videos? BET made a misguided attempt to ban a recent Teairra Mari video, but with all of the other videos that air explicit or offensive messages I’m not even sure where to go with that one. The point is though, that we do have the power to control what gets put out there, and its OK to knock the hustle of people we deem to hold a social responsibility to our community. You don’t want Uncle Ruckus to say “nigga” 10x over and spit racist rhetoric? I don’t want my little sister repeating raps about putting her private area on people’s sideburns. This is what the radio is playing lately. They don’t even respect us, because we don’t respect ourselves. If we’re not going to critique and protest about it, then the standard will continue to drop to the point where we have no threshold by which to say “look… this is bull.” Hell, I bet Cathy Hughes even used the beat to “Bedrock” in one of her Radio One rants about social and political accountability. It seems we’re all confused about what we want to protest and what we want to support. She’s complaining about the way politicians are treating black radio… but clearly she must not hear enough complaints about how she’s treating black radio herself.
I know some people do call these folks to fire, some do critique and analyze, some do have a higher standard of expectations for our messengers. But not enough people do. The reality is that the “conscious” among us are aware. It’s the walking unconscious though, the unknown unknowns, that I’d love to see do more critical thinking on the messages they’re receiving. I’d love to see the conscious do more connecting and conveying their consciousness to those less aware. Mainstream messages in the black community are what they are, because we let them be. We let other people control our messages, with no regard for the outcome. My fear is that while its all cool now, we’ll end up paying it backward years from now.
I just hope that we keep in mind that despite what Jay-Z said, you CAN knock the hustle. We just have to make sure we’re knocking the right (meaning wrong) hustles.
Article by Sean Walton Jr.
Sean Walton Jr. is the 25 year old Founder and Editor-In-Chief of theFreshXpress.com. Hailing from Ohio, he is an attorney at The Cochran Firm, practicing in the areas of civil rights, personal injury, and criminal defense. His social commentary and knowledge base centers around the role and perception of African Americans in popular culture, law, and politics. His commentary has been featured by Tavis Smiley and spotlighted by Dr. Cornel West. A proud member of Alpha Phi Alpha Fraternity, Inc., and heavily involved in community organizations, Sean seeks to provide a fresh perspective on Young Black America. Visit him at http://seanwaltonjr.com/.
Sean has written 17 article(s) for us.
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"And I’d love to see the conscious do more connecting and conveying their consciousness to those less aware."
My sentiments exactly. I will admit that I missed the message in last nights episode, but I did ask questions. Problem is, those that did understand didn't want to share the message, just mocked those that didn't get it.
Speaking as one of the people who was all set and ready to fire off on all the people I was arguing with yesterday, I definitely appreciate this post. Great job homie.
Good job. And something I kept saying last night, when speaking in general, so many people kept saying "well *I* don't say that, or *I* do do that or *I* [insert whatever way they felt they were the exception] and to that I say, "If what's being said doesn't apply to you, then it isn't for you."
Plain and simple.
The conscious among us need to spend less time responding in snobbery and more time educating in the proper tone. The unconscious among us need to be open for the lesson.
Something I’ve noticed about us (Black people) is we interpret so many things in so many ways. In terms of, say, Boondocks, some people view it as deep; some view it as funny, crap, over-the-top, brilliant, ground-breaking, more and more. Hell, I just started watching it a few weeks ago, and still have conflicting feelings about it, but for the most part, I dig it. A friend of mine said she was gonna start watching it tonight, and I’m gonna tell her to start from season one, because if she uses this episode as the one to start her experience, it won’t give her the best representation of his work. With that said, I think that contributes to so many people being all over the place, when it comes to McGruder and his show. People may not directly hold BET and some of their nonsense to the fire, but after seeing this show, a conversation that was initially about the cartoon spills over to other areas where we can hold folks accountable. For that, I give McGruder his due. He’s winnin’.
People hold music videos, artists, VH1 and their bullcrap to the fire quite a bit, but I think what’s happened is it’s so commonplace, that people just throw their hands up, and instead, as you said, re-direct that energy on a new target (in this case, the target being McGruder). Some people don’t even know why they’re mad at the man, but they just are. Then again, that’s a reflection of society, where people wanna be zombies, as opposed to standing out on their own, but that’s another discussion for another day. Some people (hell, even me) have the attitude that music videos, the artists that contribute to some of it, and the shows aren’t going anywhere anyway, and instead of raising hell about it (in terms of getting them off the air), we’ll talk about it, put folks up on game, and allow them to make an informed decision. Plus, it keeps my blood pressure down.
This really was an excellent article probably one of the best yet on FXP. Great job SW.
I don't watch the Boondocks. I also don't listen to Nicki Mina or most music out right now because the subject matter is so disgusting. I don't watch Flava of Luv or any of the other shows as well. Having said that my view of the Boondocks and shows like this is what it teaches people. I know many will say it's all in good fun but it takes racism to a level that is incredibly degrading. Sadly, one race of people is not the whole audience for the show so why encourage the already thick racially negative attitude in this country. I'm sure there are people (of other races) who watch and cosign everything. That disturbs me.
I think about the people who lived through segregation and how they felt to be called certain names and the names the pain inflicted. There was a whole civil rights movement to make it possible for people to come out from under oppressive mindsets such as what is viewed as comedy based on this cartoon. I'm still trying to wrap my mind around why anyone would support this. I don't think the Boondocks maker has some higher educational purpose. No. It's pure shock value. He has cracked the code and he is making money.
I do agree we should knock them all. I mean that sincerely. I'm tired of all of it. Somebody. anybody, needs to stand up and say this is enough. We need to truly elevate ourselves.
"If we’re not going to critique and protest about it, then the standard will continue to drop.."
From the looks of it it's only going to get worse and people will continue to support it.
Just finished watching the episode that aired last night and IMO, I did not find anything too crazy about it. Meaning that I know that McGruder puts out some controversial stuff and I didn’t find this episode to be any different. That Obama episode was CLASSIC and was needed b/c many folks (including I for a hot second) were guilty of thinking that Obama was gonna change the game but most blacks folks who were all giddy didn’t understand politics enough to know that Obama is part of the system as well. Thus, the revolution won’t be televised as quickly as we would like. IMO, people expect folks like McGruder, Obama to be the savior to change everything and that everything he does has to be positive for Black folks. Similar to the Drake video where Ladies were blown b/c Coach Drake had a video w/ half-naked ladies to their dream song of “Best I Ever Had’ and expecting him to be totally different than what is out there. Not so much.
I think this happens b/c they have the mainstream media and we see how influential the media can be on our kids. First problem is that people expect/allow the media to raise their kids. Regardless of how hard you have to work, people can find time to talk/educate their kids if they really want to. The music industry isn’t going to change anytime soon. However, there is a way to balance out the negative images. We have to explain to these kids that the music is just entertainment and that they can appreciate the music for that entertainment but that they must understand that most artists are not living the lifestyle that they rap about.
Also, it is tough b/c these kids are following the dollar signs and they see the artists and the borrowed money and think, it is the life to live. However, black folks, like the President of Am.Express, hold serious wealth. While it would be great to have these folks in the public eye more so that these kids can see that type of success. However, wealthy folks know to keep a low profile and thus, kids follow the {insert random rapper) path of making money.
When I work with my high schools kids, I always want the kids to understand balance. I want them to know that they can accomplish both, especially these black men. They think they can only be a trapper or a 4.0 student and they don’t know/believe that they can be comfortable in both groups. I want students to see me and say “ok, yea he listens to the same music and represent the same style, but he has masters degree (Ed.D soon) and advocates for higher education, etc.”
Ditto. The quote that speaks to me best is from Lupe:
"Failure’s my last name, Never’s my first one; You see I hood a lot, and yeah I nerd some; Hood’s where the heart is, nerd’s where the words from… don’t represent either, because I merged them…"
I live that. I'm from the hood, and I know that that's is for a reason. My purpose has always been wrapped around the ability to speak, thrive, and influence in multiple environments. I struggle with how to succeed in one area without losing my credibility in the other. Its tough to be respected equally in both the hood and the boardroom, so I'm working on carving out my own lane and *making* folks respect it. Its a tough thing to deal with though… I don't even tweet sometimes because I'm being watched now, and I'm not trying to be judged in 140 characters or less. Say the wrong thing and I'm trapped in conventional thought as either unpolished and ghetto, or out of touch and elitist. So yea… I'm going to figure it out, and influence both areas in line with my purpose.
Hell, I just vented. Not even sure where I was going with that now.
On another note, you're right. Out of a Forbes list of the wealthiest black Americans, at least 4 of the top 15 were real estate moguls. But again, thats what I mean by allowing others to control our message and not protesting the bull that gets put out there. They're has been a succession of shows focused on dating, love, music, and celebrities in the black community because people want to see them and they make money for execs. But why not have a reality show where we focus on following the lives of these wealthy black real estate moguls? Why not make that a reality? I seriously don't see it as a priority for white people to get those messages out there, that you can make money and build wealth in a unconventional ways. So its on us to either make and help them get that message out there, or do it ourselves. EIther way we can't sit around idly and allow other people to mold our communities and the vision for our future.
Nah son, you are not venting at all. I share that same struggle and vision in how to represent myself with the same balance.
These reality shows are going to continue to focus on what sells. Even channels like TVOne, who have the opportunity to show those shows still focus on celebrities and their success/trials with shows like Eddie George and Lisa Raye. This may be where the independent film folks can make some shows/films that touch on the topic.
A show like the Rev. Run show highlights that dynamic of balance. Here you have a man who created a wealth through his music/branding and rather than his two sons looking to continue that business and enter the corporate office, they are trying to avoid being the elite kid and try to become rappers and trying to do it on their own. It is like "yo, your pops has already worked hard and established the brand, why are you taking two steps back or shying away from it just for the sake of saying "I kept it real, etc." Maybe Diggy has a chance but that older brother is a bum musically whereas the girls strengthened the brand through the shoe line, etc. That becomes a whole 'nother topic where we need to understand the importance of creating a legacy of generational wealth for your children rather than all these kids struggling the same way their parents struggled.
I think the problem is these young kids look at wealthy Black folks and believe that they can't relate to that person like Kenneth Chenault or the late Reginald Lewis. Better yet, I would bet that these kids are scared to step outside of their zone so they don't want to relate to that person b/c it is easier to "keep it real". Thus, personal interests in hobbies outside the "black kid norm" are not exposed or enjoyed.
To be honest, I’ve always believed The Boondocks to be Tyler Perry for pretentious Negroes. Aaron McGruder has always been great at shucking and shimmying all while cloaking it in the guise of satire, and somehow we’re all supposed to hail his groundbreaking work.
My problem is: many of the conscious brothers and sisters that love the show would rather spend 30 minutes laughing about the pathology of the Black community than actually going out to do something to change it.
“My problem is: many of the conscious brothers and sisters that love the show would rather spend 30 minutes laughing about the pathology of the Black community than actually going out to do something to change it.”
This does happen, although thankfully not in my circle. A very high percentage of the people in my circle are out working hard for our community and directly with our young brothers and sisters in mentorship and sponsorship (sponsor in this case meaning taking their support beyond mentorship and helping to provide for the needs of children).
But this also happens with those who hate the show. They spend 30 mins criticizing and talking about how this is ruining black people or what have you, and then they spit venom at those who enjoyed the show, finally to go back to their bubble of life in which they too do nothing to change the state of Black America.
At the end of the day, no matter what images are out there, we ALL have the ability to whisper in a child’s ear education beyond what they see on T.V., good or bad.
“But we expect great things from him, and we need to start expecting great things from all of our messengers, not just the ones we think should be doing them. Lets make them all do better.” This is so true.
I missed Boondocks last night and the Twitter debate that apparently followed, but this article did get me thinking…
There are two groups of people more likely to criticize Bill Cosby, Aaron McGruder, and even Obama more than Gucci, Nicki Minaj, Jeezy etc: those who relate to the latter group and those who don’t.
For the people who see Gucci, Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj (and BET in general) as ignorant embarrassments to the black race who somehow made it as “artists”, they don’t see the need to even analyze and criticize what these artists are saying 1) because they honestly don’t know what they’re saying having never done more than simply overhear their music on occasion and 2) they’ve decided that the ignorant will never be enlightened as long as they are making millions off their coonery.
For the second group (those people who do relate to these artists), they won’t criticize because they have excused the messages — however negative and detrimental they may be — as the artists just “keeping it real”. They don’t see a problem with the glorification of gangs and prison time because they don’t see it as glorification. They see it as an experience the artist had that relates to their very own experience. And, worse, they don’t understand the far reaching effects of a character like Nicki Minaj.
I guess it’s up to the people who fall somewhere in the middle — those who can listen to the music yet not mindlessly consume it and those who can view Cosby as more than an elitist yet not agree with everything he is saying — to knock the hustle. And knock it we must.
Malcolm X once preached black nationalism, the ideology of a self sufficient black community that defines its own messages and controls its own businesses. He placed emphasis on businesses 50-60 years ago. Today, with the ever growing climate for social media and commentary, we must place emphasis on controlling our own image and messages. The beauty in The Boondocks is the way Mcgruder uses satire to poke holes in main streams depiction of African Americans. When entire episodes of the boondocks can be wrapped up into one syllable, "Eh," i figured people would comprehend. When entire seasons can be wrapped up into one sentence, "What's the point of talking if no one ever learns," I then wonder how many people will understand. Sean, you hit the nail on the head multiple times. We want to drag a messenger through the dirt who refuses to conform and who actually challenges us to do better yet we praise ignorance and coonery that drags us further down. Four episodes into the season and i hear echoes of cancelations and disapproving tweets. Where are these tweets and uproars when detroit police shoot little girls or Universities shun minorities away in the name of higher standards? When do we stand up for real injustice and inequality instead of frustrated misconceptions and misunderstandings? Everything was all cool when Mcgruder poked fun at a Rapper who end up working for UPS, but when a Country singer and Uncle Ruckus team up to sing racial slurs we rise. The worst part is that people don't see the message of most episode of the Boondocks. I wonder if they ever did and ever will.
From one young public intellectual to another, you hit on the money with this one SDot. Look forward to changing the world one opt-ed at a time. Stay VOCAL homie!
/hf
Without getting into an in depth discussion about Hip Hops aesthetics and history, I think the reason we dont critique hip hop the same way as something like the boondocks is because we draw entertainment from hip hops form, rather than its substance. and I think that is fair, it is an aural artform and what is important there is the beats sounds etc..going further into hip hop in particular is the word play or “swag” etc. substance is not the basis of hip hop. hip hop first and foremost was dance music. then cleverness of the mc. someone like mcgruder, his form is in the substance of what he does. he is a satirist and the form is centered on substance, so we critique that. one wouldnt critique the shows “swag” or “flow” because its not apart of the form. hip hop artists do pastiche, which belies ambivalent about substance. satirists are not ambivalent about substance and embed hard messages in their works, so we critique them.
that said, i think its dumb as hell people want boondocks off the air because of the obama show. not only do i think its dumb, but given the substance of that episode, i find it so ironic that that in itself is comedic.
Substance isn't the basis of hip-hop? There is substance in everything we take in, whether its overt or subliminal. We take on the mentality of the messages that are thrown at us repeatedly, especially when they're dressed up in smooth beats and hard bass lines. Its like a wolf in sheep's clothing – we can either recognize the danger, or get eaten alive without ever seeing it coming. You and I can take hip hop and reality shows (and whatever other forms of black media messages we allow non-blacks to control and direct) and take it for the entertainment that it is – for us. But the Cosby Show that I grew up on is now For the Love of Ray J and the Lauryn Hill that I appreciated is now Nicki Minaj. Certain messages did help shape my upbringing, especially before I was mature enough to truly break down what was being said. I could spit a lot of lyrics word for word when I was as young as 7… and that includes both Fresh Prince and Too Short. So I see your point, but in reality when we don't pay this stuff attention or even question the motives, intents, or realities they convey, it isn't hurting us now, but it is hurting the very communities and young people we should be paving the way for.
Also, we pay attention to The Boonodocks and other shows because it also has "swag" and a great presentation. If it didn't, it might as well be on the History Channel or C-Span… we wouldn't appreciate the message w/ the style its being presented in. And often we still get the subconscious messages McGruder throws at us, even when its dressed up in hilarious situations. So my point is just that all of that is related, its the total package that gets you at the end of the day. Hip-Hop, Reality TV, etc., is all glamorized to appeal to the African American demographic, regardless of the message, ideals, and values they instill in our community. And the white man get paid off of all of that. Somebody has to hold folks accountable at the end of the day… they aren't going to hold themselves when they're getting wealthy off of us the bullshit the feed us. Knock the hustle.
I dont know man. I like Gucci and Wocka Flocka. Wocka is like 20. he is uneducated and he is a rapper who has outright shunned "lyracism". his intent is not to make you think. It is to make you dance and go crazy. at what he does, he is a genius. on the same note, if you even tried to analyze his lyrics youd find they were non-linear and non-sensical alot of the time. his art is in his ability to make you dance and get crunk. applying the same lens you would use for someone like mcgruder or even tavis smiley is kind of ridiculous to me. there intent is to make you think so it follows the sorts of things they would have us think should be open to criticism.
we have our mos defs and jay electronicas and i love them as much as the next hip hop bred cat, but i would be bored to death with music if there were no wockas or weezies. i dont want them to change. i see your point about people not processing the weezies and wockas properly, but i dont think the solution is to criticize the weezies and wockas. criticize the structure that makes them the most prominent style of music we hear. criticize why kids cant listen to weezie and take it for what it is. but expecting them to raise the bar?? how? they are already awesome at what they do.
The lens we apply to McGruder and Tavis Smiley are reading glasses. The lens we apply to Waka and Gucci are beer goggles. It might look good tonight, but we're going to be pissed off in the morning when we realize what happened. We should apply the same lens across the board and scrutinize those with the most recognizable voices the same. Gucci and Jeezy and Waka arguable have the greatest access to our most powerful resource. I like the music too, but I think thats an issue that we have as educated and informed individuals… we look at our personal enlightenment and think all is well in the world. We shouldn't question and scrutinize and ask Weezy to spit conscious rhymes, you're right… he's not going to do it. But we should at least make the messages that are put out more of a conversation – amongst ourselves, in our communities, when speaking to the youth, and even when speaking with white folk. Its out there and we can't avoid it, so we should try to at least embrace it and use it as an educational tool. I don't think we do that, we kind of just ignore it and think of it as "not being our problem", to the point where "money make me cum" and "pussy on your sideburns" is on the radio and nobody cares. And who listens to the radio? I don't… but kids do.
So I guess what I'll try to do on my end is actually raise that conversation with my younger brothers and sisters (age 19, 17, and 15) and actually see what THEY think about the lyrics. Then at least try to point out the fallacy in what these cats are talking about, in the case that they are taking it at face value. Maybe I can help them at least critically think their way out of what they are being force fed. Because the reality is that every time my 17 year old sister speaks, I can tell that she has been heavily influenced by our culture and her environment.. and that isn't necessarily the best thing considering what is placed at the forefront of our communities in 2010.
yeah, I agree. i think engaging the youth and figuring out how they feel about the music is the way to go.
that was part of the fuss with texas not including hip hop in their curriculum as a influential artform of the 21st century. if they included it, then theoretically educators could place the music in a more beneficial perspective rather than the schools just ignoring it because it is has elements that are controversial or even base. because the reality is it is out there and kids will hear it. adults should do a better job making sure kids are better equipped to handle it and take it for what its worth.
I can admit somewhere around the ninth paragraph I began to lose focus and my eyes began to cross. Sorry, chronicles of being self-diagnosed with ADHD. However, I trucked on and had this to say (great article, btw):
I've haven't watched more than 5-10 episodes of the Boondocks combined. It's simply not my type of satire. I don't hate it, I don't love it. I'm just simply apathetic to it. From what I HAVE seen is that similar to the problems with Dave Chappelle, wherein Black people have been forced to look at themselves and take ownership of their own societal ills. However, when this perspective has to be formed under what we perceive as the auspices of white America we tense up, because we are still not past the point where we want our issues to be discussed outside of our own backyard or blamed when we look around and see there have been too many holes planted for seeds we aren't ready to cultivate.
Furthermore, I think the bigger issue is who becomes the target for blame in these media outlets. Dave Chappelle received the bulk of his criticism before he went to Africa, came back and created the lost episodes. When the lost episodes came out, they were heralded by us, because he began to call out the "white systematic forces" that may not have understood his message. This pleased Black people. We had someone to blame again.
Sean, I saw on your Formspring someone suggested you read "Losing the Race: Self-Sabotage in Black America." I think a lot of what he talks about in that book deals with what is unfolding right before our eyes. In that book, McWhorter speaks a lot about the culture of victimology. How Black people love to criticize past injustices and constantly use that as a scapegoat for problems we face today. The problem with the likes of McGreuder and previous Dave Chappelle episodes was it doesn't subscribe to that particular culture.
Even with hip-hop, when I've seen discussions surrounding its content, both the left and right sides of the spectrum of Black people were pleased because we can blame the artists for being coons AND/OR we can blame the white people who pay them pennies to the dollar and convince them the bullshit they spew is what pays (and well, obviously it does). Flavor of Love, Love of Ray J, Keyshia Cole, etc… we can blame these people who "make us all look bad" AND/OR we can criticize the white people who own these stations as well as Bob and Sheila Johnson for selling BET and Debra Lee for being a minion.
Even with Obama, we can blame him for not being more proactive in his campaign promises. We can turn a blind eye on the fact that even within his first year and a half he has not addressed the Black Agenda like he said he would when he enjoyed an overwhelming vote thanks to Blacks in South Carolina AND/OR we can criticize the white forces that be and remind others that he is not the President of Black America, but of America period. Even though white Presidents were forced to identify a Black Agenda, and if they adhered they were lauded and if they didn't they were criticized (see: George Bush does not care about Black People).
All in all, most Black people will never be ready to have this discussion that points the finger at us. Everything we are and do, some would like to be able to blame on covert or overt racism.
Yep, we have to take control of our own destinies, and also pave the way towards a progressive future for black folk. We sit back and allow too many things to happen, while not taking charge. I sometimes question our willingness to think beyond complacency and just barely making it. As our issues get progressively worse, I just wonder when people are going to get mad. And that actually brings to mind the Boondocks Dr. King episode (if you missed it, please watch it or read up on it: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Return_of_the_King_(…. I just don't think people care anymore. Its like actually wanting to be and do better is a thing of the past, because we've gotten a little bit of success. The conscious are trying to educate the conscious, which minimizes progress because its tough to take a good situation and make it great. We have to take bad and make it good… which means talking to each other is good for brainstorming and strategic measure, but too often it stops there, We would be much more effective if we can figure out how stir more people to discussion and action.
I'm bout to go piss some people off and see if that works.
You know what though, I'm not sure if the bulk of this generation is capable of effectively getting mad. I've even seen it here on the FreshXpress. When topics get deep and heavy, it becomes a match of wits instead of discussing the issues. When people get mad, it results to typing hard and throwing shade. It doesn't mean by any stretch that we shouldn't continue trying to discuss the issues. I think the angry approach worked well for people who were articulating their thoughts when white patriarchy and the likes were the overarching enemy. However, perhaps when dealing with our own kinds, perhaps we should try a different approach than getting us mad at what WE do to ourselves, because the only thing worse than an emotive angry Black, is an emotive psuedo-intellectual angry Black. Well, I don't know, because then I'd be guilty of promoting the handling of Blacks and our issues with kid gloves too… *le sigh*
Oh and let me say, I'm guilty of some of that shade throwing too, lol.
And I'll check out that Boondocks episode. Thanks!
Niggas hate being forced to think….
and at the same time they over-think the wrong stuff.
Excellent write-up!
Couldn't have said it any better or succinctly.
i feel like this debate in itself is the problem. Pointing out that Gucci and Wayne perpetuate the same issues that the boondocks did in last nights episode, doesnt make it any less wrong. Dont defend by deference. If you want to talk about the issues that abound in the music of gucci’nem fine that doesnt negate the fact that The boondocks is now treading water in this same territory.
in both instances you are defending the indefensible under the guise of artistic license. Which fine, the artist has the right to do whatever they want to do but the audience doesnt have to accept it outright.
I just hate to see how much a lot of what we deem as “cooning” has to do with stereotypical things. Guccie is rejected out of hand, but AARON can have a white man yelling nigga and i shouldnt bat an eye because he is educated? because his cartoon is supposedly high brow and Educated black people approved? Naw Son.
Aaron shouldnt get any more leeway than Gucci and Gucci shouldnt get any less criticism than the Aaron and the boondocks.
Foolishness is foolishness and there was nothing smart or artistic about last nights episode.
Education has nothing to do with it. Gucci doesn't have to go to college to send out non-destructive messages via his medium… the same way McGruder can go to college and still be ignorant. You're right… foolishness is indeed foolishness, across the board. That was the point of my article though… lets call it all out, even the people we deem to not know any better. Some people hold Tyler Perry to the fire for having the opportunity to make great movies and dumbing things down… well we should also recognize that street DVDs circulate throughout the hood that show guns, drugs, and women being sexually objectified. We analyze the hell out of Erykah Badu's booty and criticize her methods, but we ignore the rest of the music videos that have no message or method… just straight sex. We vilify those who are at least trying to make us think or stir us towards SOME time of action (instead of our normal apathy), yet we're quiet on other issues. You don't have to fight every battle, go for what you know, but recognize that if Boondocks goes off the air for pushing the envelope, the envelope then doesn't get pushed at all. Status quo remains, and ain't nobody talking. We're just being fed bullshit, no questions asked.
As far as the Boondocks treading water into the same territory, that's your personal opinion. I'd disagree. I can look at the satire and understand what he's getting at. Yea, he had a white man yelling "nigga", but do white folk not yell "nigga"? Take the kid gloves off… it happens, and he's bringing attention to it. He's using dark humor and satire to push the envelope and make us think, or at least make us talk. There are black folk that shun their blackness in hopes of being accepted by white people, and there are still white people who are ignorant and racist. He just went to an extreme to prove his points. To even insinuate that McGruder is venturing into Gucci (etc.) territory is silly. Think beyond the words.
I do appreciate rap that makes you think… I'm not anti-hood rap. I embrace, because I can relate to everything but the crack music. Its just a difference between being a social commentator from the hood, and spitting reckless destructive nonsense. So no… Gucci and McGruder can't even be mentioned in the same sentence.
At the end of the day though, defending the Boondocks isn't my primary goal here, its to say that we should be called to protest by more than just the folks with the high expectations. Raise the bar for everybody, care about everybody. I assume that you care because Boondocks is a show that you watch, or at least expect to speak to you. But while we're fighting battles up top because he's "educated", Boondocks ratings aren't even that high. He doesn't have more influence than a ton of more destructive people. That's my point… if we're going to get up in arms, lets do it in a more consistent, productive, and efficient manner.
Sidenote: As I wrote all of that I'm listening to this Jeezy mixtape. I'll probably pop in some Gucci next too. As I enjoy the music and the beats I'll be making sure I'm not just recklessly calling folks out. I like to be well-versed on the principles and intent of folks when I criticize them. Makes me feel more credible. Not that I don't think you do, but I'm definitely well-versed on both hood rap and satirical black comedy. And yea… again… they aren't in the same lane.
As far as artistic license, again its not because he’s educated. Nas never went to college, but I think his album ‘Nigger’ is pure genius. Brilliant. And he uses “nigga” profusely. He pushes the envelope nonstop and makes us think on the album though, and so I do allow more room for error from someone who is trying to help us progress and grow. So again… Aaron > Gucci. All “foolishness” isn’t created equal.
I call a spade a spade whenever and wherever I see it. I dont think it may be a club or let people renege just cause we cool or i fux with you.
in using that hood analogy to basically say that the perpetuation of stereotypes and self destructive images are destructive ALL THE TIME. So i cant give Aaron a pass. Sorry, I dont think he gets a freebee because in the past he has had moments of brilliance.
and also lets be real, Gucci and his ilk get plenty of criticism. The south has been charged with the ruin of rap, the issue of misogyny in not only his but many others has been widely discussed and criticized. Lets not act like the fact that he still sells records means that he isnt being criticized. The boondocks is still being watched despite the fact that it is a shell of its former envelope pushing self. I’m not calling for it to be removed from the air, but I respect those that do, just as I understand those that boycott gucci mane.
I dont think that white people using the word nigga is an issue anyone is unaware of or anything that needs to be pointed, out, I dont believe that the guise of satire allows you to be less socially responsible about the way your message can and will be construed.
We are not talking about the issues he raised in his cartoon, we are discussing when its okay to rely on the perpetuation of stereotypes as art when in fact this conversation in itself is destructive in my opinion. As I stated Gucci deserves his criticism, but so does Aaron because at the end of the day there are destructive images present in BOTH Aarons cartoon and Gucci's music and we need to talk about both.
i think in a round about way we might be saying the same thing.
Yea, we actually are. And I'm not even trying to convince you otherwise as it concerns the Boondocks. I thought the first episode of the season was great. I thought the last two left much to be desired. I disagree, because I don't get where the social irresponsibility or destructive images came into play. Again, to put them on a level playing field doesn't make sense to me but hey, to each his own. You've stated that you believe they both should get criticism, and thats my point. I think people surround themselves with like-minded people and begin to believe that their frame of thought is the consensus. I'm sure the people in your circle and friends and friends of friends do criticize Gucci and other destructive messengers. That doesn't mean that enough people are paying attention, just means you roll with a smart crew. We still have to keep in touch with the masses though… and try and push their standards as well.
And what honestly sparked this was a tweet from myself that "I wish people got this riled up about the music they were dancing to at the club last night." So in actuality I wasn't even trying to reach the people that "get it". Just trying to motivate the people.
except I disagree that foolisness is not created equal. I cant get caught up in intent. I dont know what Gucci or Aaron intends but I can say that Lemonade and last nights Boondocks episode are ridiculous as hell.
The end message, which was the whole point of the show, was that no matter HOW much Ruckus thought like he was white, acted as if he was white, and identified with what your average ignorant red-neck white people thinks about African-Americans, because of his skin color, he was STILL in N*****.
Folks have been saying since the episode that "It wasn't funny", "I'm offended", etc. I'm convinced some black folks, even some "educated" black folks, would rather be entertained than educated, and would rather scratch the surface than dig a little deeper and find the meaning behind something.
wow.
one of THE best blog post i've EVER read online. period. full stop.