Thug Life Army

When Don Imus made his comments that started the closer look at hip hop, did anyone really think that anyone would really be able to change hip hop and the mind set of the hip hop culture.

When Russell Simmons and Dr. Benjamin Chavis on behalf of the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network “recommend that the recording and broadcast industries voluntarily remove/bleep/delete the misogynistic words "bitch" and "ho" and the racially offensive word "nigger", did they truly believe this action would change the mind set of main stream hip hop?

In a world where ‘it is all according to what your definition of is – is’, where does that leave the words ‘Biatch’, ‘Hoe Dogg’ and ‘Nigga’ among others and the context that they are used? Is this already a loop hole that will be used to deem such words as ok?

Asking for limited or removal of three words is just playing to the cameras and ‘acting’ like you are doing something. The mind set needs to change and respect must be brought back into the equation; not just respect for women but respect for life and everything involved in it.

Words can cut sharper than a knife and the lasting wounds of ‘the cuts’ left by verbal attacks can last a lifetime and have devastating effects; both personally and on society.

In my area they have been showing re-runs of ‘Classic Soul Train’ shows. As you watch and remember the tunes, you notice the people who attended the Soul Train shows and you are left with an image of how different things have become.

Even the ‘Soul Train Dancers’ as beautiful as they were, left something to the imagination. Not like today when ‘hoochie’ hip hop and rap videos show you everything a woman has, except her birth certificate.

The point being that a line has been crossed and to use freedom of speech to defend disrespect is not the way to go. The mindset of the culture of hip hop must change, not just three words.

Hip hop use to be all about ‘Keeping it Real’, when in fact now hip hop is evolving into a fantasy world. Videos portraying rich rappers flossing jewels and expensive cars when in fact most of those items go back after the video shoot.

And of course there is always that ‘perfect’ (so called) woman, barely wearing anything and always acting like sex is the biggest thing in their life. Are these not mixed messages and where do three words fall into this?

Women have a role in all this to. Hip hop video vixens should think of the message they are sending to the young females in hip hop culture. Is sex and looking good the main thing – or is being successful at what ever you do important.

It will take much more than recommending “that the recording and broadcast industries voluntarily remove/bleep/delete the misogynistic words "bitch" and "ho" and the racially offensive word "nigger", it will take the entire hip hop community – artists, fans and the industry – to change the mind set of the culture and further our people instead of holding them back.

We are loosing so many youth that we will have no hip hop culture at this rate. Gang violence, imprisonment, serious drug abuse, alcoholism, unwanted births, sexually transmitted deadly diseases and many other things are taking a generation away from us, and we can never recover those who are lost – and three words can not change all that. We must change the mind set of hip hop if we are all to survive.