Racism in Hip-Hop and Its Further Impact on American Society Bachelor‘S Diploma Thesis

Masaryk University Faculty of Arts

Department of English and American Studies

English Language and Literature

Ľubica Pilátová

The Post-Hip-Hop Generation: Racism in Hip-Hop and Its Further Impact on American Society Bachelor‘s Diploma Thesis

Supervisor: Jeffrey Alan Vanderziel, B.A. 2014

I declare that I have worked on this thesis independently, using only the primary and secondary sources listed in the bibliography.

…………………………………………… Ľubica Pilátová

I would like to thank my supervisor Jeffrey Alan Vanderziel, B.A. for his advice and support throughout the writing process.

Table of Contents

1. Introduction ...... 5

2. Hip-Hop Is a Culture ...... 8

African American Musical Tradition ...... 10

Birth of Hip-Hop ...... 12

Fight the Power: Early Stages ...... 18

Mainstream vs. Underground ...... 22

3. Racism and Hip-Hop ...... 25

Mainstream ―Sell-Outs‖ Promoting Stereotypes ...... 25

Real Hip-Hop Is Not on the Radio! Want to Know Why? ...... 30

4. The Process of Ghettoization and the Impact of Ghettos on America ...... 32

Urban Ghettos ...... 33

Crack vs. Cocaine ...... 35

Police Brutality ...... 38

5. Schools, Prisons and Hip-Hop ...... 42

The School System ...... 42

War on Drugs ...... 45

6. Conclusion ...... 50

Works Cited ...... 54

English Summary ...... 59

České resumé ...... 60

1. Introduction

―I see no changes, all I see is racist faces, misplaced hate makes disgrace to races‖ – this is a verse from a song called ―Changes‖ recorded in 1996 by the late rapper Tupac Amaru Shakur. Regardless of the year of its release, the lyrics of this song are, in the opinion of many, still applicable for the situation in today‘s America. Undeniably, since the African American Civil

Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, many changes for the better have occurred concerning the presence and erasing of racism in American society.

Nevertheless, the dreamed-of equality is far from being reached. There are numerous instances of racist prejudice and oppression carried out against

African Americans even in the twenty-first century. In the society where African

American hip-hop artists record songs stating that: ―America, the beautiful, why you treat us like misfits? If all men are created equal then this is senseless.

Politicians constantly tried to convince us it‘s all good in the hood but we still defenseless. This brutality mentality‘s vicious. It‘s like this whole goddamn system‘s against us.‖ (taken from a song ―I Had a Vision‖ by General Steele), one has to wonder if ―equal opportunity‖ and ―justice for all‖ is truly the reality in America.

Throughout history, racism has always been a major issue in the United

States. Many people believe, despite the existence of numerous instances of discrimination of African Americans proving them wrong, that after the abolition of slavery in the nineteenth century and the African American Civil

Rights Movement a century later the question of racism and discrimination is no longer valid. Even though slavery was officially abolished almost two centuries

5 ago, people of African descent are continually being criminalized and discriminated. Thus, despite the fact that the Civil Rights Era has brought many important changes, the exploitation of African Americans is still continuing.

Therefore, what this thesis aims to focus on are various instances of racism and exploitation carried out against African Americans in the United

States, as well as a strong connection between hip-hop culture and racism.

By using hip-hop music as a tool, this work will expose numerous instances of exploitation of African Americans and illustrate how deeply rooted the stereotypes of people of African descent are, even in hip-hop.

Even though the term ―post-hip-hop generation‖ will not be used in this work, its usage in the title is rather important. The term ―hip-hop generation‖ refers to the rebellious and politically active African American youth in the

1980s and 1990s. The post-hip-hop generation is, therefore, a continuation of the hip-hop generation. It refers to a ―period of time […] of great transformation for a new generation in search of a deeper, more encompassing understanding of themselves in a context outside the corporate hip-hop monopoly‖ (Asante Jr. 7). Basically, it refers to a generation of people whose primary aim is to focus on following and spreading the original messages of hip-hop culture. Thus, the post-hip-hop generation represents yet another evolutionary step (after the Civil Rights Movement and the hip-hop movement) needed for further improvement of social situation in America and achievement of equality. Artists of this generation are, yet again, trying to represent the true values of hip-hop culture and use hip-hop as a tool for improvement and progress.

As far as the content of this work is concerned, the thesis is divided into six chapters (including introduction and conclusion). The second chapter deals with hip-hop being a cultural phenomenon rather than a type of music and it also explains the importance of music in the lives of African Americans.

Moreover, the social conditions and causes behind the birth of hip-hop are discussed here, as well as the early evolutionary stages of the culture.

The third chapter focuses on the issue of racism in hip-hop music. It analyzes the split and division of hip-hop, which is essential for understanding its further development and relation to the evolution of racism in the United

States.

The next chapter is dedicated to the study of the creation of ghettos and their impact on African American population, as well as the correlation between poverty, drug use and the never-ending growth of African American prison population – all of which are closely related and influenced by the institutionalized racism in America.

Further in my thesis, particularly in the fifth chapter, I will broaden the argument of existence of racism in other American institutions such as educational facilities and prisons. Moreover, a question regarding War on Drugs and how it is constructed in a very discriminatory way against African

Americans will be analyzed as well.

All in all, the primary focus of this work is on portraying the presence of racism and different forms of discrimination of African Americans in American society and analyzing the connection between racism and hip-hop.

2. Hip-Hop Is a Culture

According to various hip-hop artists, such as ―The Godfather of Hip-Hop‖

Afrika Bambaataa or the members of the rap group Public Enemy, hip-hop started as a movement for liberation, restoration and uplifting of African

Americans in their struggle against oppression (―Hip Hop History Month‖).

Because people of African descent still experienced discrimination after the

African American Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s, hip-hop was born as a consequent reaction to their continuous struggle. Music has always played a major role in the lives of African Americans and therefore in every instance of oppression carried out against them, people of African descent have always used music to spiritually uplift themselves, express their views about the status quo, as well as to convey different political messages. It is important to note that the Negro Spiritual, gospel, blues, swing, jazz, soul, rock and roll, funk and hip-hop have been built upon the previously existing music styles.

Therefore, their origins can be traced back to the roots of African music. These styles, which have a common African ancestry, were used to convey positive messages and uplift the spirits of enslaved and oppressed African Americans.

Nonetheless, it has been argued that majority of these styles have been hijacked by the mainstream music industry in one way or another. This issue has been thoroughly studied by Amiri Baraka, who in the chapter ―The Modern

Scene‖ of his book Blues People, through the example of swing music, explains why African Americans and their music have always had a problem with integrating into American society: ―It was not that the Negro was uneducated or vulgar or unfit for the society which determined why he was not accepted

8 into it, it was the mere fact that he was a Negro‖ (Baraka 185). He continues by stating that ―even at the expense of the most beautiful elements of Afro-

American musical tradition, to be successful (rich) swing musician, one had to be white‖ (ibid. 186). Joshua Perlstein from Yale University also states that

―much of the black artists work has been appropriated by white artists, who in addition to financial reward and critical acclaim have gained credit for the development of new forms‖ (Perlstein). We can take as an example of this phenomenon Benny Goodman, who is the one to be considered the ―King of

Swing‖, rather than e.g. Duke Ellington or Count Basie (Baraka 186). Another notorious example is that of Elvis Presley, who became the ―King of Rock and

Roll‖ despite the fact that majority of his music was originally created by African

American artists: ―Perhaps the best example of this came in the 1950s when the president of Sun Records was heard to remark that if they could find a white singer who sounded black that they would become millionaires. Soon after he signed Elvis Presley‖ (Perlstein). Therefore, this is not a separate instance of racism and hijacking of African American music by the music industry, but rather a pattern followed in different music styles mentioned above. Unsurprisingly, this is the case in the creation and evolution of hip-hop as well. In hip-hop, moreover, once the music reached the mainstream media, its main message and ideology were put into jeopardy. Nevertheless, there exists one branch of hip-hop that continues to portray the struggle of African

Americans and other oppressed minorities against racism and discrimination on the basis of skin color – the ―underground‖.

This chapter in its four sections explains the importance of hip-hop, and music in general, in the lives of African Americans. It also deals with the birth of hip-hop culture and its earliest evolutionary stages, which are, undoubtedly, one of the most important phases of the evolution of hip-hop – mainly because that is when racism played a critical role in the process.

African American Musical Tradition

In African and African American traditions, music and life have always been inseparable. After countless numbers of slaves had been brought to

Americas, African traditional music started to shake and heavily influence the existing music styles and cultures in the United States.

In his work ―From Blues to Hip Hop‖ Ethan Goffman states that from the sixteenth century, when the first Africans were enslaved and brought to

Americas, the African culture slowly began to thrive and affect the American society and its traditions. Because Africans were forcefully transferred to

Americas without the opportunity to bring their culture with them, the only alternative was to preserve at least some of their traditions through music and dance (Goffman 1).

Music has always been all pervasive and played an irreplaceable role in the lives of Africans. Later, its role deepened even more, particularly because it became the only medium of expression for the new slaves who were separated from their homes, culture, and traditions. They found themselves in a land without any ability to speak the language or communicate. Apart from being stolen from their homeland and sold into slavery, as well as oppressed and

10 tortured, their cultural heritage was almost completely destroyed. Therefore, since music was so detrimentally important to them, these Africans continued to maintain whatever they could of their culture (ibid.). As Randye Jones puts it: ―This stolen race was deprived of their languages, families, and cultures; yet, their masters could not take away their music‖ (Jones 2).

Although only a little is known about the music traditions of these early enslaved Africans, we know for a fact that Negro Spirituals played an important role in the early stages of the slave period. Inspired by different genres, particularly African music, a new form of expression was born – a form of expression that enabled slaves to spiritually uplift their minds and souls.

Whether they were sang at homes, churches or during work, these songs served as a tool for expressing the innermost feelings of the oppressed African slaves. The Negro Spiritual also served as a medium for conveying secret messages without the knowledge of their masters. The lyrics and messages hidden in these songs often helped slaves find the way via the Underground

Railroad and ultimately escape the shackles of slavery (ibid.).

Negro Spirituals served many different purposes. They laid a foundation for other music genres that evolved throughout history, and thus ultimately served as the first stepping-stone for the creation of hip-hop. It is important to note that lyrics played a crucial role in these slave songs, as much as they play an irreplaceable role in hip-hop music. Thus, we can draw a parallel between

Negro Spirituals and hip-hop music and conclude that they have certain common features. The first one is the strong urge and social conditions that led to the creation of these styles. And second – the idea of using this medium for

11 expressing a strong discontent with the status quo and ―fighting the power‖ by any available means: whether by using songs for escaping from slavery or for waking up one‘s community with the harsh truth of discrimination and oppression and subsequently calling people for action and protection of their own rights.

There are strong parallels to be found between the Negro Spiritual and hip-hop music. This, to a certain degree, proves that these styles have a common ancestor and come from the same source – the African music. As far as the music is concerned, it has always been all pervasive and impossible to live without in the African and African American cultures. As Martin Luther King,

Jr. said: ―We sing the freedom songs for the same reason the slaves sang them, because we too are in bondage and the songs add hope to our determination that ‗We shall overcome, Black and white together, We shall overcome someday‘‖ (Asante Jr. 4-5).

Birth of Hip-Hop

Similar to the music styles mentioned above, hip-hop was also created out of the need of people to express their innermost feelings and emotions.

What is unique about hip-hop is its dwelling on realness and authenticity. M. K.

Asante, Jr. states that in the hip-hop generation ―‗keeping it real‘ became the ultimate barometer of one‘s character‖ (ibid. 24). Constant challenging of the status quo is yet another feature of the hip-hop generation.

The term ―hip-hop‖ was created by a combination of two words. The first one comes from a word ―hipi‖, which originates in Wolof language spoken in

Sub-Saharan Africa. ―Hipi‖ means ―to open one‘s eyes and see‖, ―to see or to be enlightened‖ (ibid. 250). ―Hop‖ is an English word for a hopping movement.

Therefore, the term hip-hop could stand for ―intelligent movement‖ or

―movement (or time) of enlightenment‖, which very eloquently expresses the primary message of the culture.

Hip-hop culture emerged after the African American Civil Rights

Movement at the end of the 1960s and in the early 1970s (Price 4). It was created out of the African American people‘s need to further continue with their struggle to accomplish the goal of equality, fairness and integration into

American society. Unsurprisingly, they again used music as their main weapon.

As an American hip-hop artist Hasan Salaam states at the end of his song

―Music Is My Weapon‖:

We‘ve been using music as a weapon for five hundred years […] the griot was the first MC and the Spirituals that we sang on the plantation combated slavery. And that blues music in the Mississippi Delta that was born was fighting against them Jim Crow laws. You know, jazz music, doo-wop, rhythm and blues, rock ‘n‘ roll, soul, folk and now hip-hop. We‘ve been lickin‘ shots1 at the oppressor for five hundred years with our music. It‘s always been a weapon, always been our tool […] We‘ve been fighting against slavery, we‘ve been fighting against that overseer, we‘ve been fighting against those Klan members and those police officers that got them white sheets under their blue uniforms, man. So when I say music is my weapon, I‘m using my weapon to fight for freedom, justice and equality.

1 ―Lickin‘ shots‖ means shooting at people 13

Similarly, Ethan Goffman believes that: ―Had the Civil Rights Movement led to real integration, rap music might never have arisen‖ (Goffman 9). Thus, after the 1960s, hip-hop started to emerge as a new, but immediately very influential culture. It gave the young African Americans the sense of realness, authenticity, rebellion, and most importantly the sense of having something to relate to. According to the first rapper who signed a major record label Kurtis

Blow, quoted in M. K. Asante‘s book It‘s Bigger Than Hip Hop: ―At that point everybody everywhere was completely disco. Hip hop was a rebellious mutation of disco that stemmed from the cats in the South Bronx and Harlem who couldn‘t afford the bourgeois Midtown discos. Instead, hip hop took to the streets, the parks, the community centers, block parties. Hip hop represented the same freshness of view that drew me to Malcolm X‖ (Asante Jr. 10). Even though Malcolm X has often been considered violent, it is important to see the connection between him and this culture. After all, hip-hop has been comparably considered a violent culture with a negative influence on the youth.

Nevertheless, the important aspect of Blow‘s statement is the comparison he makes to the positive aspects of Malcolm X‘s legacy – the fresh and rebellious ideas of standing up to the oppressors and the call of the culture to end the ever continuing racism and inequality in America.

The motto of hip-hop culture is: ―Peace, Love, Unity and Having Fun‖

(Chang 105). Afrika Bambaataa, the founder of a first of its kind hip-hop organization called Universal Zulu Nation, once said that: ―When we made Hip

Hop, we made it hoping it would be about peace, love, unity and having fun so that people could get away from the negativity that was plaguing our streets

(gang violence, drug abuse, self-hate, violence among those of African and

Latino descent). Even though this negativity still happens here and there, as the culture progresses, we play a big role in conflict resolution and enforcing positivity‖ (―Hip Hop History Month‖). Hip-hop, just like every other form of

African music through the African Diaspora, represented the struggle of African descendant communities and a revolutionary voice from the very beginning of its creation. Giving a clear idea of what hip-hop was created for, Afrika

Bambaataa, together with all the other members of the Universal Zulu Nation, believed in, not four (as is very often wrongfully portrayed), but five major elements of hip-hop: ―DJing‖, ―MCing‖, ―Bboying‖, Graffitti and the most important, yet still very often repressed element – Knowledge (Chang 90).

Inspired by Malcolm X‘s statement ―Education is the passport to the future, for tomorrow belongs to those who prepare for it today‖, the hip-hop community believed in having a strong educational foundation in order to move forward and advance in life. The ―Knowledge‖ that the first hip-hop artists were promoting was the knowledge of oneself and one‘s history. The hip-hop group

Public Enemy raps in a song called ―Prophets of Rage‖: ―They tell lies in the books that you‘re readin‘, it‘s knowledge of yourself that you‘re needin‘‖. Many

MCs and hip-hop artists realized that the education they were given in American schools was, and in many cases still is, inefficient and unsuitable for African

Americans. History is being taught from the European perspective and many

African American figures and achievements are glossed over or completely excluded from the curriculum – or at least that is what many African Americans believe. In his book Fight the Power Chuck D, one of the members of the Public

Enemy, reminisces that as a young teenager he attended a summer educational program ―Afro-American Experience‖, which was ―developed to supplement the educational experience of young Black kids who weren‘t getting certain kinds of important information through the regular school system‖ (Chuck D 29). He continues by saying that: ―Young people have to be taught that there is preparation involved in becoming an adult, and if you don‘t go through the proper steps you‘ll be cut off, fail, and die quick‖ (ibid. 39). Also Clayton Gavin, better known by his stage name stic.man, who is a member of a hip-hop duo

Dead Prez, raps in a song called ―They Schools‖: ―That‘s why my moms kept stressin‘, I tried to pay attention but they classes wasn‘t interestin‘, they seemed to only glorify the Europeans, claimin‘ Africans were only three-fifths a human being‖. Therefore, many hip-hop artists started to believe in taking action and educating the African American community themselves – through their rhymes. Their goal was to educate the community not only about hip-hop culture and its origins, but also about the role and history of African Americans in the United States. Through this kind of education one was expected to learn how to be proud of being an African American and how to live a life with dignity and self-respect.

Hip-hop emerged in 1967 with DJ Kool Herc at the block parties in ghettos of the South Bronx where young and poor African Americans and

Latinos occasionally met and quite unknowingly created a new culture. At the very beginning, these parties were used as a distraction from the misery and despair the young African Americans, and Latinos, were experiencing on a daily basis. The culture started with DJs who arranged the parties and created music

16 for the youth. At the parties DJs played a role of entertainers – by speaking just a few words or rhymes to the beat. Consequently, the DJs became known as

MCs – meaning ―masters of ceremony‖ (―History of Hip-Hop Style‖). In the words of an American MC known as Murs: ―There was a mic but MCs weren‘t rulin‘, it was more about what the DJ was doin‘, he say a few words to keep the party movin‘‖ – taken from his song called ―Science‖. The third element of hip- hop culture – ―Bboying‖ – was also created at the block parties where dancing and battling served as a tool for settling arguments (ibid.).

The turning point in the evolution of the culture was the time when MCs realized that they could use the platform and attention they had gained for sending out positive messages to their people and thus influence the thinking and views of the young African Americans. By using hip-hop music as a tool, they were standing up against the oppressive social system that was, and in many cases still is, infiltrated by many racist policies. In 2009, the highly respected MC Queen Latifah said in an interview for Sirius Radio, while reminiscing about her beginnings: ―Hip-hop bit me like a bug. Hip-hop was a platform to express. Being aware that we are descendents of Africa, one of the main issues of the time was apartheid and South Africa. Hip-hop was a platform to express yourself. You didn‘t have to just brag and boast but you could say something‖ (―Queen Latifah Reigns Supreme At Sirius‖). These young African

American hip-hop artists wanted to express themselves, to tell about their situation, personal problems and struggles. The main goal was to capture the attention of the community, point out to the injustices done against African

Americans and eventually create a movement that would speak up, revolutionize and change every racist aspect of American society.

Fight the Power: Early Stages

Inspired by the ideology of the African American Civil Rights Movement leaders, the Black Panther Party, as well as by many different artists and poets of the Black Power Era of the 1950s and 1960s, hip-hop MCs understood at a very early stage the importance of being smart, witty and well-educated (not necessarily university-educated, but rather educated about their own history and culture). Joshua Perlstein, a Yale University professor, supports this idea of influence by the Civil Rights Era: ―Since the 1950s, there have been two general schools of thought as to how to solve the problems of black Americans. Simply put, but more nobly expressed in the words of Martin Luther King and Malcolm

X, the solution would be non-violence or violence. Rap groups have taken the lead in the quest for justice but the means that they advocate are as diverse as the two men mentioned above. Some seem to favor talk and education. Others, like Public Enemy, take a more radical and explosive approach‖ (Perlstein).

Another important aspect of the culture was to convey a message and idea of self-determination in American society. Therefore, one of the first things that hip-hop artists tried to educate their people on was to have a revolutionary mind and ―Black Pride‖.

Malcolm X, Black Panther Party, as well as other groups that fought for the rights of African Americans strongly believed in the importance of having

―Black Power‖ and ―Black Pride‖. In the course of history, African Americans

18 have been stripped of their identity and culture. Therefore, the most important goal of these civil rights organizations was to achieve the feeling of self-worth and pride amongst the African American community. A great number of hip-hop artists have been influenced by Malcolm‘s ideology, which was apparent in many of his actions and approaches towards different issues in American society. Inspired by both Malcolm X and Martin Luther King hip-hop artists set as their goal to continue with the message of the Civil Rights Movement. They decided to teach the African American community about their history. Majority of the first MCs could be considered a direct continuum of the Civil Rights Era activists and their main inspiration Malcolm X‘s attitude of ―making a noise‖.

Thus, they started ―making sure of being heard‖ through their music. Their driving force was the idea of self-determination, which comes hand in hand with high self-esteem. This goal, according to many, is achievable only through proper language use – particularly in not using the words ―negro‖ or ―nigger‖ when referring to oneself. This too is an ideology taken primarily from the Civil

Rights Era when figures like Dr. King and Malcolm X insisted on educating their people about African American history and teaching them to be proud of who they are.

Since the beginning of slavery, the derogatory term ―nigger‖ has been used daily and in all spheres of society to refer to people of African American descent. Lawrence Levine, an American historian, states in the documentary

Ethnic Notions that: ―It was perfectly polite for whites in the North, educated college types, to write in high-toned journals like Harper‘s and The Atlantic and

Scribner‘s to use words like nigger, and coon, and darky‖ (Ethnic Notions). This

19 demeaning word was used as a tool for making African American people subhuman and thereof justifying slavery. The propagandists of slavery used it for making the white slave owners hate Black people, as well as for deepening the hatred of Blacks for themselves. As soon as the main leaders of the Civil

Rights Movement understood this problem, they started avoiding the term, whereas hip-hop artists tried to re-coin it.

Chuck D, one of the leading members of the hip-hop group Public

Enemy, explains the connection between hip-hop music and self-pride in his book Rap, Race and Reality. He testifies that he himself was a witness to the evolution of usage of different terms for addressing African Americans: ―I witnessed my family, and Black people […] go from using the term ‗Negro‘ in

1963-1964, to using the term ‗colored‘ in 1966-1967, to using the term ‗Black‘ and using it with pride by 1968. […] My parents used to play all of the popular jams of the day, and one of my favorites was James Brown‘s ‗Black Is Beautiful:

Say It Loud, I‘m Black and I‘m Proud‘‖ (Chuck D 27). Even though Chuck describes the late sixties, it is crucial to understand his observation. James

Brown‘s music, dance, as well as his ideological perspective heavily influenced hip-hop culture (―Hip Hop Facts‖). In 1989 Public Enemy sampled James

Brown‘s track ―Funky Drummer‖ for their single ―Fight the Power‖ and to this day it is one of the most sampled songs amongst hip-hop artists (―FIGHT THE

POWER by PUBLIC ENEMY‖). Thus, his music has not only influenced the musical aspect of the culture, but it has also awakened people to have ―Black

Pride‖. It has inspired slogans such as ―Black Is Beautiful‖ or ―Black Power‖.

In 1991 Tupac Shakur, whose life philosophy was heavily influenced by his mother who was a member of the Black Panther Party, recorded a song called ―Words of Wisdom‖. Here he explains what the word ―nigger‖ or ―nigga‖ means to him: ―When I say ‗nigga‘ it‘s not that ‗nigger‘ that we‘ve grown to fear. It‘s not that ‗nigger‘ that we say as if it has no meaning. But to me, it means Never Ignorant Getting Goals Accomplished.‖ This same approach was later adopted by the hip-hop duo Dead Prez, whose main inspiration was

Tupac.

Another aspect of the culture, as has been already mentioned, is

―Knowledge‖. Hip-hop served as a platform for educating the youth and speaking about the issues that mattered and had to be dealt with – whether it was history and the African Americans‘ role in it or the issues of inequality, racism, or poverty. It could also be understood as a call for action to resolve different problems which were affecting African American population, or an attempt to convey uplifting and positive messages about life and pursuing of one‘s dreams. Avoiding negative attitudes towards life was yet another feature of hip-hop culture. Here is a verse performed by Rzarector from a song called

―Twelve Jewelz‖: ―Have you not heard that words kill as fast as bullets? When you load negative thoughts to the chamber of your brain and your mouth pulls the trigger that propels wickedness straight from hell, from the pits of your stomach where negativity dwell‖.

From the very beginnings of the culture, hip-hop artists used to brag and boast about ―kickin‘ knowledge‖ and ―droppin‘ science‖ in most of their rhymes.

In the earliest stages MCs used to compete about who was the smartest and

21 most articulate. Gary Grice, better known as MC GZA from the famous group

WU-Tang Clan, states that: ―It was always about crafting the best rhyme in the most articulate, witty or smart way. For us, it was always about educating the listener‖ (Leland). By educating the listeners, MCs tried to spread awareness of the status quo in America and make people think about a revolution. Hip-hop trio Public Enemy raps in their most famous single ―Fight the Power‖: ―It‘s a start, a work of art to revolutionize, make a change, nothing‘s strange. People, people, we are the same. No we‘re not the same, cause we don‘t know the game. What we need is awareness, we can‘t get careless‖. As an American musician and writer Saul Williams simply, yet very eloquently puts it: ―hip-hop became the language of youth rebellion‖ (Asante Jr. 10).

Mainstream vs. Underground

In its origins ―hip hop arose as a unifying force for young people of all races and ethnicities who had two major things in common: an experience with

Black expressive culture (whether through birthright or adaptation) and experience with the brutal clutches of poverty‖ (Price 19). After the first decade of its existence, however, hip-hop started to take an unusual route.

The late 1970s and early 1980s brought hip-hop mainstream attention.

Numerous record labels and radio stations started to show interest in hip-hop music and therefore, it soon became a nationwide phenomenon. The reason for this sudden success was a song called ―Rapper‘s Delight‖ recorded in 1979 by the famous group Sugar Hill Gang which ―ignited a new musical and cultural movement with a style and flavor all its own‖ (ibid. 81). A year later ―Kurtis

Blow became the first rapper who signed a major record label‖ (Mr. Wiggles) and ―earned rap music‘s first certified gold record for posting more than

500,000 sales of ‗The Breaks‘‖ (Price 13). This isolated instance of success was seen, by many producers and record label owners, as an opportunity to invest in rap music. As a result, the representatives of the music industry hijacked hip- hop music for the sole purpose of making profit and becoming rich. They were not interested in representing the African American struggle. On the contrary, they produced only the type of music that even more exploited and promoted the existing stereotypes of African Americans. In the exact words of M. K.

Asante: ―With rap videos, movies, music, news, advertisements, our minds have been shaped by one-dimensional, stereotypical, racist, and most of all, limiting images of what Blacks can be‖ (Asante Jr. 22).

African American musicians found themselves again working for the music industry that was representing neither them, nor their struggle. M. K.

Asante claims in his book It‘s Bigger Than Hip Hop that: ―[…] the mainstream has hijacked ideas like Malcolm X‘s ‗by any means necessary‘ and applied it to guerrilla capitalism, hence: Get Rich or Die Tryin‘. This lack of ownership has caused hip hop to be transformed into a consumer movement dictated primarily by an affluent base of whites who purchase and distribute it‖ (ibid. 70-71). The mainstream artists, oftentimes unconsciously, promoted the existing racist stereotypes of African Americans and thus not only influenced how white

Americans saw Black people, but also how Blacks saw themselves. Gradually, in the eyes of public, the mainstream hip-hop music became a symbol of African

American people and their culture.

A great number of artists, e.g. Public Enemy, KRS-One or Dead Prez, opposed the mainstream hip-hop industry and continued to represent the original messages of the culture. Because their ideology was so different from that of the mainstream artists, their music has been labeled ―underground‖.

Furthermore, the ―underground‖ artists tried to dissociate from the mainstream artists called ―rappers‖. According to KRS-One‘s verse from his single ―Classic‖ the term ―MC‖ and ―rapper‖ are not interchangeable: ―This is the difference between MCing and rap: rappers spit rhymes that are mostly illegal, MCs spit rhymes to uplift their people‖. In this way, a huge gap was created between the two ―branches‖ of hip-hop music. One was represented by hip-hop industry.

The other, which stayed authentic and true to its origins, continued to represent the hip-hop community. Asante concludes that: ―The hip-hop industry

(as opposed to hip-hop community) has been successful in framing an authentic Black identity that is not intellectual, complex, creative, educated, or diverse, but a monolith of violence (only against other Blacks!) and sexism‖

(ibid. 25).

In this chapter, the aim was to demonstrate the importance of music, and nowadays particularly hip-hop music, in the lives of African Americans.

Hip-hop as a form of art and expression has, since its early beginnings, proved to be a vital part of lives of African Americans. What is important to understand is that hip-hop is not only the music created by the predominantly African

American youth, but rather a culture – a complex culture with its own history,

―five elements‖, credo, and most importantly with its own vision – simple, positive, hopeful vision for better tomorrow.

3. Racism and Hip-Hop

In the previous chapter, various instances of influence and connection between hip-hop music and racism have been demonstrated. Particularly in the last sections, the process of birth and evolution of hip-hop culture has been thoroughly examined. The primary aim of this chapter is to focus on the role of racism in hip-hop music and to show the extent to which they are intertwined.

The fact that hip-hop has become a part of the mainstream music industry caused hip-hop music to split and thus create a new ―type‖ of hip-hop which, whether consciously or not, promotes the racist stereotypes of African

Americans (as opposed to the ―underground‖ and its uplifting ideology). Not only has mainstream hip-hop betrayed its original message of self- determination, self-pride and the role of being an expressive form and tool of oppressed people‘s struggles, but with its negative imagery and attitude towards life it also serves as a representation of African American culture in the eyes of most Americans.

Mainstream “Sell-Outs” Promoting Stereotypes

Rap music is considered to be the most popular element of hip-hop culture and thus also the most influential. The popularity that hip-hop gained in the early 1980s in America caused the creation of mainstream hip-hop music, which nowadays appeals to even much broader audience. The problem with hip-hop becoming a part of the mainstream is in the misuse and abuse of its original ideology. As has been already mentioned in the previous chapter, hip-hop music and culture have been created on a strong basis of realness and

25 authenticity – the idea was simply ―keepin‘ it real‖. M. K. Asante, who quotes in his book an American writer William Jelani Cobb, writes: ―Hip-hop culture, and in particular rap music, is particularly unique in this because ‗The blues artist may sing about evil, but is not required to be it or live it. The rapper is judged by a different set of credentials – the ability to live up to his own verbal badness‘‖ (ibid. 24). With this attitude in mind, many rappers who have become a part of the mainstream industry brag about their ―realness‖ – whether it is in connection with their inner-city ghetto upbringing, the rebelliousness so typical for this culture, or the glorification of ―badness‖ and sometimes even criminal behavior. The problem is that many of these rappers are either over- exaggerating in their songs or simply lying for the sole purpose of fitting into a certain ―standard of realness‖, which has, over the years, become a ―standard of negativity‖. According to M. K. Asante, Russell Tyrone Jones, also known as

Ol‘ Dirty Bastard, ―vehemently denied his middle-class upbringing, and instead promoted a poverty-stricken, dangerous one (as if being Black wasn‘t enough)‖

(ibid. 29). The reason for this behavior is simple – young African Americans strive to be accepted into hip-hop culture as real and authentic rappers (even if they do not represent any of the culture‘s original messages and struggles).

This hijacking of the ―keepin‘ it real‖ ideology is therefore the primary reason why the mainstream hip-hop and rap songs are considered an authentic representation of African American culture. Nevertheless, they serve as a medium for conveying misleading messages about lives of African Americans, and also as a medium for supporting and promoting the racist imagery.

Influenced by the stereotypical images on TV, which still depict African

Americans as if they are only capable of ―singing, dancing, telling jokes, telling one-liners in a sitcom, talking about a triple-double, touchdown, or stolen base, or getting locked up in a squad car on Cops‖ (Chuck D 5), many African

American teenagers have low expectations and see hip-hop music as one of the only ways, if not the only way, out of their situation. Since hip-hop music gained a certain level of popularity, and major record labels started to invest in rap and hip-hop, many African Americans have begun to see making music as the opportunity and medium for escaping poverty. The problem with becoming a mainstream artist is that one has to learn how to adapt to the system or the system will not let him, or her, in. Record label executives control everything that comes out under their label, and therefore, they do censor or at least edit their artists‘ work before releasing the CDs. The main objective of the producers, executives and record label owners is to make rap music profitable for themselves. Therefore, they release music that is appealing to the predominantly white audience: ―White men — specifically young, suburban white men — consume around 80% of hip-hop music. This became a recognized industry fact in 1991, and since then, the music industry has crafted mainstream hip-hop culture to appeal to that demographic‖ (Barnes). This is exactly when racism plays a crucial role. Record label owners sign and employ only those artists whose music they know will appeal to the white audience, which is, in America, still influenced by stereotypical imagery of African

Americans. Keeping the racist stereotypes of African Americans from the slave era alive, mainstream hip-hop music more often than not promotes the idea of

African American man as ―ignorant, womanizing, hypermasculine thug‖ and

African American woman as ―oversexed, loud, quick-to-get-an-attitude-over- nothing bitch‖ (Asante Jr. 29). Therefore, if any of the mainstream artists do not support these racist stereotypes, or they even try to point out to the problems concerning racism in hip-hop music industry, their songs are simply censored by the record label. This was, for example, the case of Mos Def‘s song called ―Rape Over‖. In the song he suggests that a great majority of record label owners are rich Caucasian males who exploit this African American art form: ―Old white men is runnin‘ this rap shit, corporate forces runnin‘ this rap shit‖. This song was supposed to be on his album ―The New Danger‖, but was omitted from the playlist (ibid. 107). Hip-hop duo Dead Prez also experienced similar type of corporate censorship, when the cover photo of their first album

―Let‘s Get Free‖ depicting ―South African youths with guns celebrating victory over the police‖ was censored (ibid. 109). These are just a few instances of censorship that serve as a representation of how the hip-hop music industry works. The Public Enemy member Chuck D expresses his stance concerning the industry in the following words: ―Historically, the entertainment business has been a one-sided rip-off deal […] I‘m tired of seeing record company executives, lawyers, and accountants in the business go through long tenures and million-dollar bank accounts while artists, because of a lack of schooling and a lack of concern for the art form, end up broke and penniless most of the time […] There are guys who‘ve been behind the scenes of the music business for forty or fifty years, living fat the whole time by exploiting Black creativity‖

(Chuck D 105). Another interesting fact which points out to the racism in the

28 music industry (and in America in general) is mentioned in a song called ―White

America‖ by a Caucasian rapper Eminem: ―Let‘s do the math, if I was black, I would‘ve sold half, I ain‘t have to graduate from Lincoln high school to know that‖.

Another aspect of the mainstream hip-hop is that many rappers believe that ―the only way to blow up and become megastars is by presenting themselves in a negative light‖ (ibid. 3). Therefore, from the African American youths‘ point of view, if they do not want their songs to be censored, they have to promote negativity and racist stereotypical images of themselves. Thus, as

Chuck D explains when speaking about the mainstream industry: ―Through rap music the most negative projection of ourselves becomes the most popular for young people. What develops is a driven hipness to be cool and to be on the side of the criminal‖ (ibid. 45). Hence, the minds of African Americans become influenced and programmed to believe that they are inferior to Caucasian

Americans, and consequently even rappers themselves start to spread these kinds of stereotypical messages (even though it is oftentimes done unknowingly or with a purpose of being ―cool‖). Chuck D continues by stating that: ―The media just doesn‘t focus on those positive songs, they‘d rather dwell on the negative‖ (ibid. 3). A great example of this negative and stereotypical imagery promoted by an African American is YG‘s song called ―My Nigga‖. Lil Wayne, who is featured on this song, raps: ―I kill for my motherfuckin‘ niggas, […]

White person, got my middle finger on the trigger‖. As a result of this behavior,

―there is a perception from urban youth that these manufacturers [companies and artists] are ignoring their origins [and] they are named sell-outs‖ (Asante

Jr. 9). An evidence of this condemnation of the ―sell-outs‖ by the ―real‖ MCs is the late Tupac Amaru Shakur‘s song called ―Rebel of the Underground‖, where he raps: ―So what‘s wrong with the media today? Got brothers sellin‘ out cause they greedy to get paid‖.

Real Hip-Hop Is Not on the Radio! Want to Know Why?

The term ―real hip-hop‖ is strongly connected to the notion of realness and authenticity. ―One definition of hip-hop authenticity is staying true to oneself‖ (William 4). It is equally important for a hip-hop artist to stay true to hip-hop‘s original roots, messages and ideology. Through ―underground‖ music, hip-hop artists express their recognition of racism‘s existence in American society, and particularly in the music industry. Therefore, their songs focus on challenging of the status quo in America, and thus cannot be admitted into the mainstream radio stations and TV programs – particularly because they are very often accusing these media outlets of being discriminatory and racist.

According to a speech made by an African American MC Wise Intelligent from a rap group Poor Righteous Teachers, the fact that hip-hop has shifted from being a tool used for conveying positivity and upliftment to a tool of negative messages and racist imagery ―was not a consequence of history. It was not a circumstance of history. It was nothing that just happened on its own

[…] It had everything to do with the fact that they are people, in this particular society, who wants to see us exactly where we are‖ (The Final Call). Wise

Intelligent, as well as many other MCs from the ―underground scene‖, blames the still existing stereotypes of African Americans and the racist background of

30 the music industry on the current state of mainstream hip-hop. As a result of this realization and accusation, ―underground‖ MCs started to further dissociate from the mainstream ―sell-outs‖ and their struggle for justice and equality became even more apparent.

In the previous section, the reason why the ―real hip-hop‖, with its messages of fighting against racism, discrimination, and the ongoing presence of African American stereotypes, has not been admitted into the mainstream music was thoroughly explained. Record label executives and producers do not support songs with positive messages that are created for a purpose of uplifting

African Americans, but rather negative songs promoting racist stereotypes.

Thus, as explained in this section, the ―underground‖ or ―real hip-hop‖ is understandably not a part of the predominantly negative mainstream music with its subtle racist messages.

4. The Process of Ghettoization and the Impact of Ghettos on America

Since ghettos have played an important role in the process of creation and evolution of hip-hop culture, it is important to explain the true origins and motivations behind their establishment – particularly because there is a strong correlation between racist mentality in American society, the establishment of ghettos and hip-hop culture. In his essay ―Origins of the Urban Ghetto, 1870-

1915‖, Allan Spears analyzes the reason and historical context of the creation of ghettos. Mr. Spear states that: ―Recent historians of ghetto life have viewed white hostility as the major force behind the racial polarization of urban society.

Restriction in housing and employment forced black people into separate communities where they had little choice but to provide for themselves the facilities and services that the larger community denied them‖ (Spear 154).

In this way, African Americans were discriminated on the basis of their skin color and thus forced to live in these urban ghettos – separately, and far away from the ―white neighborhoods‖. Therefore, taken Spear‘s statement into consideration, the American urban ghettos are, in their true nature, a result of segregation, racism, and discrimination of disenfranchised African Americans.

Even more important is the fact that by creating ghettos the American government created a place of despair and helplessness, which is further connected with drug abuse, criminal behavior and thus higher prison population. On the other hand, even though ghettos are undoubtedly a terrible place to live in, there is one positive thing about them – it was exactly this negative and hopeless environment that inspired the African American youth to create hip-hop music and culture.

Urban Ghettos

In his book It's Bigger Than Hip Hop, M. K. Asante explains the origins of urban ghettos. Similarly to Spear, he examines their creation in the historical context and therefore states that after the abolition of slavery, which was abolished ―without any restitution, Blacks were forced into a vicious cycle of sharecropping, also known as Slavery II, where they paid rent to white landowners from their yearly yield‖. This system of sharecropping was created in such a way that the sharecropper never managed to pay his debt, and thus he could never free himself from the land he was working on. This, in combination with the ―de-citizenizing Jim Crow laws‖ maintained the status quo in the South and kept African Americans in debt and extreme poverty. During the First World War, great numbers of African Americans started moving northward into big cities, particularly because unskilled labor was needed in northern factories. This phenomenon, however, subsequently became one of the causes of the Great Depression. The problem was, as Asante states, that:

―President Franklin D. Roosevelt cut Black people out of his plan to alleviate the poverty of the national Depression‖. Under Roosevelt‘s presidency, Federal

Housing Administration, a program created for a purpose of providing mortgages, was developed. Even though it provided mortgages to many

Americans, majority of those of African descent were excluded from the program due to ―redlining‖ – a process of advising banks not to provide mortgages to people from ―redlined areas‖ – areas predominantly inhabited by

African Americans (particularly ghettos), where ―people were forced to live, because of discrimination via racism in the real estate market and segregation‖.

Furthermore, ―during the second great migration […] industrial cities decided to segregate the industrial from the residential areas […] Therefore many Black areas were tagged as industrial neighborhoods [which] prevented these neighborhoods from undergoing any new construction and even limited the improvements that could be made‖ (Asante Jr. 37-41).

Taken the abovementioned facts into consideration, ghettos have been created on the basis of American discriminatory and racist policies.

Furthermore, in 1949, under the Truman administration, Housing Act of 1949 was passed, which basically meant ―driving poor people out of their homes, i.e., black and minority removal, and building on the vacated premises luxury housing, commercial projects and so on‖ (Freeman 28-29). This ―Urban

Renewal (which, behind closed doors, was called ‗nigger removal‘) was all about systematically uprooting Blacks from sections of the city deemed ‗valuable,‘ then forcing them into projects. For every ten homes that they destroyed, they only built one new unit in the projects – institutional overcrowding‖ (Asante Jr.

36). In this way, urban ghettos, whose inhabitants have always been the poorest minorities in America (particularly the African American minority), have been created. It is important to note that in this particular environment hip-hop culture was, a few decades later, born into its existence. African American youth used their musical tradition and inclination towards music in their favor and created hip-hop – an expressive art form used for telling stories and everyday struggles of African Americans. Tupac Shakur, in his song ―Lord

Knows‖, expresses his despair and hopelessness of living in the ghetto: ―My memories bring me misery, and life is hard in the ghetto, it‘s insanity, I can‘t

34 breathe‖. Via hip-hop music one was, and still is, enabled to sense the feeling of despair and misery that has always existed among the African American community living in the oftentimes almost uninhabitable conditions. Thus, ghettos, established on the basis of racial discrimination and to certain extent segregation, ironically created a perfect environment for hip-hop culture to emerge. It was out of despair and suffering of the poorest residents of

American ghettos that the first hip-hop music was born.

Nevertheless, there is still one grave problem concerning urban ghettos that has existed since the very beginning of their emergence – the drug use of their residents (and particularly the use of crack cocaine).

Crack vs. Cocaine

In America, there are great numbers of ghetto residents that have serious drug problems. Not only do many of them sell drugs for a living, but some also use drugs – and particularly crack cocaine – because they see it as a

―way out‖ of their desperate situation. Also, many hip-hop artists either used to take drugs, sell drugs, or have a family member who did or still does. As Tupac

Shakur raps in his song ―Dear Mama‖: ―I ain‘t guilty cause even though I sell rocks2, it feels good puttin‘ money in your mailbox‖. In the song he also states that not only was he a part of the ―drug business‖ in his past, but his mother used to be a drug addict. This hints that in the ghetto many people are affected by drugs in one way or another – either by their consumption or the ―drug business‖ in general.

2 A term referring to drugs (particularly crack cocaine) 35

Thus, once ghettos, which have been inhabited by African Americans who have been living there in extreme poverty and despair, were established, the problem with drugs emerged. In 1986, The Anti-Drug Abuse Act was passed, ―which established extremely long mandatory minimum prison terms for low-level drug dealing and possession of crack cocaine‖ (Alexander 87).

Under this law ―Blacks and Hispanics were those primarily punished […] due to the fact that crack cocaine use was more prevalent in those communities […] 5 grams of crack cocaine and 500 grams of powder cocaine triggered the same five-year mandatory minimum sentence […] This created what was commonly referred to as the 100-1 unfair ratio between crack and powder cocaine‖

(―Federal Crack Cocaine Sentencing Reform - Analysis‖). Apart from reinforcing harsher laws for low-level drug possession, the Anti-Drug Abuse Act also created so-called ―‗three strikes‘ laws mandating a life sentence for those convicted of third offence‖ (Alexander 87). Therefore, it is not important if the person has committed a violent or a nonviolent crime. The crucial part is that one could be incarcerated for a disproportionately long period of time (or even given a life sentence) just for being arrested three times for a petty crime such as possession of drugs. In principle, this Act could be perceived as a very unreasonable and unnecessary step in American legislature designed solely for criminalizing the poor African American population, rather than fighting against the drug abuse in the country. What could serve as an evidence of the racist background of this new policy is the fact that since this law came into existence

―African Americans [have been] charged seventeen times more often than whites‖ (Asante 37). Moreover, even Noam Chomsky, in his analysis of the

36 issue, goes as far as saying that what is nowadays happening in America

(concerning the criminalization of drug use and drug abuse) is nothing more than a ―race war almost entirely. From the first moment […] the orders given to police on how to deal with drugs […] You don‘t go into the white suburbs and arrest some stock broker who is sniffing coke in the evening, but you do go into the Black ghettos and if a kid has a joint in his pocket you put him in jail [and moreover] the sentencing […] is grotesquely disproportionate‖ (PetrocTV).

The question now is what role does hip-hop play in all of this. As has been already mentioned in the beginning of this section, there is a strong connection between ghettos, hip-hop, and drugs – hip-hop culture was born in the ghettos, which are full of drug users, and thus, even hip-hop artists and their families are affected by this problem. Also, having explained the reasons behind the creation of this culture, one can conclude that hip-hop‘s role

(referring not to the mainstream hip-hop, which oftentimes even promotes drug use, but rather the ―real hip-hop‖) is to point out to the injustices in the

American justice system and make people aware of the situation and its possible solutions. MC Murs raps in his song ―Science‖: ―See our government seems to think that there‘s a difference between powdered cocaine and crack, for instance. You get five years for five grams of crack but in the powdered form you have a hundred times that. Now who has the rock and who has the powder? Who‘s the oppressed and who has the power?‖ Thus, by questioning the status quo and talking about the issues concerning discrimination of the

African American population based on their race, Murs and all of the other

―real‖ MCs draw attention to the institutionalized racism. Similarly, in these

37 instances again, the African American music is used as a weapon for combating inequality and injustice – by exposing the drug use in the ghettos, the disproportionate sentencing laws and also the racist policies, all of which have been implemented into American society and legislature.

Police Brutality

The Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s is perceived by many as a movement that has granted more equal social, political and living conditions for African Americans that they had before. Although it may be true that the situation in America has ameliorated and the lives of African Americans have slightly improved, the fight for equality is far from won. Police brutality against African Americans has always been one of the biggest problems in

American society. An African American Solomon Comissiong, a founder of Your

World News media collective, states in an interview about police brutality for RT

(Russia Today) that in his opinion ―the institution of policing […] is institutionally racist by nature‖ (IN THE NOW). He believes this to be true particularly because there are countless numbers of cases of African Americans being stopped, harassed, or even being shot at (and many times even shot dead) by the police. Solomon also testifies how he has been stopped by police for no apparent reason on ―countless occasions‖ (ibid.). Although his personal account does not have to be considered of any particular value, there are many other African Americans who have experienced the same treatment by police officers – either by being stopped for no reason or harassed. There are also many cases of people of African descent being shot and killed by Caucasian

38 police officers in numerous controversial situations. According to a study based on the ―federal data of fatal police shootings from 2010 to 2012, reviewed and analyzed by ProPublica, […] young black men are 21 times more likely to be killed by police than their white counterparts‖ (Crockett Jr.).

Furthermore, even various rap songs can serve as testimonies of African

Americans being harassed and intimidated by police officers. Numerous MCs who experienced police brutality themselves subsequently recorded songs about their experiences of being offended and harassed. One such song, called

―Trapped‖, was released in 1991 by Tupac Shakur. In the song he raps: ―They got me trapped. Can barely walk tha city streets without a cop harassin‘ me, searchin‘ me, then askin‘ my identity. Hands up, throw me up against tha wall, didn‘t do a thing at all‖. This particular song was based on an experience Tupac had at one point in his life when he was severely beaten by a police officer who allegedly told him that he had ―to learn his place‖. The officer stopped him in the street and kept asking him about his name and ID and wanted to arrest him. When Tupac asked ―on what grounds‖, he charged him for jaywalking.

Consequently, Tupac was beaten unconscious and sent to jail for ―resisting arrest‖ (Tupac Amaru Shakur Unofficial Channel). Even though this happened twenty-five years ago, there are similar cases of police brutality occurring throughout America even in 2014 (and they are not at all exceptional). Hasan

Salaam, in his song ―Jericho‖, states: ―They said that racism in America‘s over, well tell that to the pigs3 when they pulling me over […] they call us niggers, they call us thugs, say we all good for nothing and we all sell drugs‖. Hasan is

3 A term referring to police officers 39 yet another MC who, during his life, experienced many instances of police harassment based solely on the color of his skin and therefore tries to point out to these injustices in his songs.

Furthermore, there are numerous examples of African Americans being shot and killed by police on the streets of America. Whether it was Trayvon

Martin, Eric Garner, John Crawford, Ezell Ford or the most recent case of killing of Mike Brown, there is one thing they have in common – all of them were

African Americans killed by Caucasian police officers (Harkinson). The fact is that African Americans are twenty-one times more likely to be killed by police than whites. The abovementioned statistic based on federal data speaks for itself. In this case, it is not important whether these unarmed African Americans committed any crimes or not. With these numbers and statistics one is left wondering how it is even possible that so many African Americans die at the hands of Caucasian police officers.

Moreover, there are several African Americans who have been identified by many as ―political prisoners‖ of American government – whether it is Assata

Shakur, who has been granted political asylum and is living in Cuba, or Mumia

Abu-Jamal who has been incarcerated for more than thirty years now. In these instances again, whether they are guilty of the crimes they are accused of or not is not important. Both of them were political activists and are considered as such by many even today. Majority of hip-hop artists view them not as criminals, but rather as ―political prisoners‖ who have, over the years, become important personages or even icons of Black struggle. An American rapper known as Common raps in his song called ―Song for Assata‖: ―In the spirit of

40 the Black Panthers, in the spirit of Assata Shakur, we make this movement towards freedom […] I‘m thinking of Assata, yes, listen to my Love, Assata, yes.

Your Power and Pride is beautiful, may God Bless your Soul‖.

These abovementioned cases serve as an example of existence of racist stereotypes and prejudice against African American population. Through hip- hop music one can be yet again introduced to the world and life of this oppressed minority which, even in the times of Barack Obama, still continues to be judged by their appearance and skin color. Hasan Salaam, at the end of his verse in the song ―Jericho‖ recorded in October 2014, concludes: ―Racism‘s biz, stay right on track, and none of it changes just because the president‘s Black‖.

5. Schools, Prisons and Hip-Hop

The aim of this chapter is to focus on the existence of various discriminatory policies in different American institutions – particularly in the educational facilities and prisons. In the second chapter, the close relationship between hip-hop culture and racist stereotypical imagery was discussed, whereas the third chapter focused on the influence of racism on the creation of urban ghettos and their further expansion. There was also a notion of existence of prejudiced and stereotypical thinking in American society which manifests not only in everyday interactions among the American people with different skin color, but rather in the institutional racism existent particularly in the police department, which oftentimes uses racially motivated disproportionate force against the members of African American community. As far as other American institutions are concerned, in the school and prison systems particularly, there are different discriminatory measures and policies still being held in place in favor of Caucasian Americans. Moreover, the African American minority continues to suffer from the racist policies and actions based on the stereotypical prejudices created in the slave era, even throughout the twenty- first century.

The School System

Even though there are certain universal standards of American educational system guaranteed by the federal government, the high school curriculum slightly varies depending on the state. Therefore, a discussion about the presence of racism in American school system is rather complex. It is

42 important to note, however, that the proclamation of equality and justice in

America can only be made if there is an equal opportunity for all its citizens regardless of their skin color (and also, naturally, not only on the educational level, but rather in all spheres of society). One of the problems of the American educational system has already been touched upon in the second chapter, where numerous instances of discontent with the American school system by various hip-hop artists were presented. Whether it is the example of discontent by rapper stic.man, who attended high school in the state of Florida, or the one made by Chuck D, who was born and raised in New York City, they provide us with the viewpoint of African Americans who feel that to overcome the problems of prejudice in American society, African Americans, as well as

Caucasians, need to be properly educated about African American history and its importance and impact on the overall history of the United States.

Chuck D compares the state of educational system to the slave era when

―there weren‘t any gates around the plantation, but there was a control over the plantation, which told Black people that they were not allowed to educate themselves‖ (Chuck D 31). The importance of this statement lies within the fact that his comparison does not merely demonstrate his opinion, but rather a standpoint of many African Americans. Chuck further continues by declaring that: ―White supremacy and racism were thrust upon us – we didn‘t invent them. We‘re just by-products of the worst aspects of them […] [and w]ithout proper education from a Black perspective to Black youth we‘re lost‖ (ibid. 31-

33). What is important to understand is that African Americans feel underrepresented in American society and they strive to change their situation.

African American youth, particularly, realize that the education given to them by the government is not preparing them for life in American society. They feel that ―[t]he curriculum doesn‘t teach how to survive or even function as a Black person in America‖ (ibid. 34).

Nevertheless, the aim of this work is not to criticize American educational system or claim that American schools are failing completely. Rather, the aim is to point out to certain imperfections of the system which is, in many cases, based on racial prejudices. There is an insufficient focus on important African

American personages who have made a difference in the Black struggle.

Moreover, there are only a few historical events taught in schools portraying people of African descent as heroes, heroines, scientists or inventors – simply, there is a lack of African Americans being portrayed in the same positive light as Caucasians.

Notwithstanding the curriculum, which is even today being challenged and regarded as racially biased by many African Americans, there is yet another problem concerning the American educational system – school segregation.

According to ―[a] new report released […] by the Department of Education Civil

Rights Division‖, the United States ―might actually be regressing to provide an equal opportunity for success to all children. The study was the first of its kind in nearly fifteen years and examined data from the ninety-seven thousand or so public schools.‖ Some of the most important conclusions of the report state that

―Black students are suspended or expelled at three times the rate of white students […] and just over fifty percent of all Black high school students attend schools with full range of math and science courses […] compared to seventy

44 percent of white students‖. Furthermore, one of the most disturbing facts revealed by the study claims that ―Black students are also four times as likely as white students to attend schools where one fifth of teachers don‘t meet State requirements‖ (breakingtheset). Therefore, African American students are provided with lower quality education than their Caucasian counterparts, which means that the American educational system is far from being equal. Hence, one could even claim that the system is on its way to a new re-segregation.

This study, therefore, provides American public with various crucial facts important for understanding racial inequality of educational facilities in the

United States. Moreover, the study shows even further division between different racial groups, African Americans and Caucasians particularly, that needs to be addressed.

War on Drugs

Even though the infamous War on Drugs was initiated by president

Richard Nixon and further propagandized under the Reagan administration

(particularly by the passing of the Anti-Drug Abuse Act of 1986), the roots of the problem are much deeper and the issue far more complex. During the past two decades, in the light of new evidence, certain theories, previously regarded as conspiracies, were proven to be at least partially true and also very surprising, to say the least. According to a CIA report of 1998, which could be to certain extent considered an ―admission of guilt‖, during the Nicaragua revolution of 1981-1990, ―guerrilla armies [which the CIA] actively supported in

Nicaragua were smuggling illegal drugs into the United States – drugs that were

45 making their way onto the streets of inner-city black neighborhoods in the form of crack cocaine. The CIA also […] blocked law enforcement efforts to investigate illegal drug networks that were helping to fund its covert war in

Nicaragua‖ (Alexander 6). Unsurprisingly, various hip-hop artists, yet again, used music as a tool for spreading this information and educating the youth about these newly discovered important facts that came to light at the end of the 1990s. This particular CIA report was popularized by the hip-hop song

―Science‖ recorded by MC Murs. In the song he raps about the route of drug trafficking: ―From the CIA by way of Nicaragua, shipped to Rick Ross, he‘s the black godfather‖ (Rick Ross in this case is not the famous rapper, but rather the infamous drug lord).

Another fact that serves as a proof to those who believe that the War on

Drugs was created with the purpose to further dismantle the already impoverished African American community is the theory which claims that the drug crisis was actually not the cause, but rather the consequence of the Drug

War. According to Michelle Alexander, who in her book ―The New Jim Crow‖ focuses on the institutionalized racism in today‘s America, ―the War on Drugs began at a time when illegal drug use was on the decline‖ and it actually

―[caused] arrests and convictions for drug offences to skyrocket, especially among people of color‖ (Alexander 5). Therefore, contrary to popular belief, the

War on Drugs was not ―launched in response to the crisis caused by crack cocaine in inner-city neighborhoods‖ (ibid.), but it was the initial cause of the crisis.

As far as the American prison system is concerned, Noam Chomsky, in his video conference with a group of Foundation Degree students, explains the important historical events that took place and led to the current situation and state of American prisons. He particularly focuses on the original causes of the problem of mass incarceration of African American population. In the video conference he claims that when slavery ended in 1865, it ended ―only technically‖ (PetrocTV). Even though the freed slaves were given certain rights at first, ten to twelve years later ―there was a compact between the North and the South which essentially permitted the South […] to reinstate a form of slavery […] through criminalizing Black life‖ – for example by accusing African

Americans of petty ―crimes‖ such as vagrancy. If ―a Black man was standing at a corner, he could be arrested […] and charged maybe ten dollars, which he didn‘t have, and sent to prison and [he] wasn‘t able to pay the debt and stayed there forever‖. Furthermore, he could be also charged with attempted rape if he was ―looking the wrong way at a white woman. And through a combination of corrupt judges, corrupt sheriffs, racist institutions, [and] plenty of violence

[…] much of the Black population was imprisoned‖ (ibid.). In this way, a great number of African American men, particularly, ended up in prisons and were used as a cheap workforce. Even though the Jim Crow laws have been officially prohibited, a great number of these racist practices are still continuing to be used in today‘s America. Chuck D analyzes the situation of mass incarceration of African Americans in his book and states that from the 1990s onwards, corporations started ―shutting down their plants and investing in prisons, which have become legalized slave-labor force for the year 2000 and up‖ (Chuck D

46). Even today, inmates are being used as the cheapest form of workforce in

America – and particularly African Americans because they make up the majority of all inmates. However, regardless of this immoral practice and the financial motivation behind it, the biggest problem still lies within the disproportionate drug sentencing, which is closely connected to the race of an individual, and therefore within the disproportionate mass incarceration of

African Americans. Chuck D concludes that the biggest problem is in ―[t]he ridiculous disparity in sentencing laws for crack offences versus cocaine offences. […] A person caught with five grams of crack will serve more time […] than a person caught with five hundred grams of powder cocaine […] but the reality is the person with five hundred grams of cocaine is one hundred times more likely to be white‖ (ibid. 11-12).

Furthermore, the higher the incarceration rate of African Americans, the lower the possibility there is for them to have a right to vote in elections.

Former inmates are hardly ever properly reintegrated back into society. They often end up unemployed and living in poverty as a consequence of their incarceration. Moreover, many states have already imposed ―poll taxes, literacy tests, and other devices to prevent blacks from voting‖ (Alexander 30). The facts are that many African Americans are not being properly educated, but need to pass literacy tests if they want to vote. They are also victims of mass incarceration based on racially biased laws and if they are ever released from the prison and interested in voting they have to pay the poll taxes – which many of them cannot afford because of the lack of social and political support

48 for their integration (because if they are struggling to find a job and survive, there is very low probability that they will be able to pay the taxes).

Therefore, if any conclusion is to be made from these various facts, it is that the sentencing laws in America are racist in their nature and as a consequence, even though ―whites […] are more likely to engage in drug crime than people of color‖ (ibid. 7), African Americans are the ones who are being dispossessed, disenfranchised and massively incarcerated – ―The United States imprisons a larger percentage of its black population than South Africa did at the height of apartheid‖ (ibid. 6).

6. Conclusion

Racism is an issue that has been haunting America probably since the first ships of African slaves anchored at its shores. After slavery was officially abolished in 1865, the newly freed slaves found themselves living under another form of slavery known as ―sharecropping‖. The Jim Crow laws implemented at that time caused African Americans to be over-criminalized and massively incarcerated. Even though this is perceived by many as a problem of the past, various statistics prove this theory to be wrong. Nowadays, not only are African Americans still disproportionately arrested, sentenced and incarcerated, but they are also victims of police brutality and harassment. The

War on Drugs, which was officially presented as a war against illegal drug trade and drug abuse, consequently brought even more drugs into the streets of

America, and especially into the inner-city neighborhoods which are, in majority, inhabited by poor African Americans. On the basis of the Anti-Drug

Abuse Act of 1986, African Americans have been disproportionately targeted by the American government for their usage of drugs, even though there are higher numbers of drug offences committed by Caucasian Americans.

Furthermore, the problem of existence of racism and racial prejudice in

America has manifested in educational facilities as well. American schools are, even today, far from being equal and the opportunities offered to students vary according to their skin color. As the latest statistics prove, there is a huge gap between the quality of education offered to Caucasians and that provided for

African Americans (whether it is the quality of school facilities, books or even teachers). Therefore, not only is there a great disparity between the

50 incarceration of African Americans and Caucasians, but people of African descent are in general being given lower quality education.

The influence of hip-hop culture on solving, but on the other hand also on fuelling, the problem of racism in today‘s America was closely analyzed particularly in the first half of this work. As far as music is concerned, African

Americans have always had a unique way of using music in difficult situations to uplift themselves and support each other. Since the slave era, music has had a huge impact on lives of African Americans and played a crucial role in helping them get through life difficulties, challenges, as well as the psychological trauma, which occurred as a result of living in slavery for hundreds of years.

Whether it was the Negro Spiritual, jazz, soul, funk or hip-hop, the primary cause of emergence of all of these styles was more or less the same – the oppressed African Americans were simply trying to find ways to cope with their difficult lives.

Hip-hop culture has always been used as a tool for expressing ideas, emotions and aspirations of the African American community, as well as for fighting the status quo – particularly the discriminatory policies and racial prejudices existing in America since slavery. It is important to understand that hip-hop is not merely a type of music, but rather a culture with its original message of spreading peace, unity, love and fun. Even though, or maybe particularly because, it has been created in the most impoverished parts of New

York City – the African American (and Latino) ghettos of the South Bronx – its message has been resonating particularly with the poor African American youth.

With its five basic elements (―DJing‖, ―MCing‖, ―Bboying‖, Graffitti and

Knowledge), it has served as a way of expression for many African Americans.

Even though in the middle of the 1990s there was a split and gradual division of hip-hop music, the ―underground‖ and its representatives (the ―real‖ MCs) have continued with the original message of pointing out to the injustices in

American society and the negative stereotypical portrayal of people of African descent. The mainstream hip-hop artists, however, found themselves in a trap.

They could choose between being played on radios for a price of promoting racist stereotypes of themselves (and thus being called ―sell-outs‖ by the ―real‖

MCs) or not being given the platform at all. In this way the mainstream has further supported the racist and prejudicial thinking in American society and the

―underground‖ has continued its noble fight of fighting against it.

All of the issues and problems analyzed in this work are also analyzed by many ―underground‖ hip-hop MCs who regard themselves as custodians of knowledge and who have gained the privilege to speak to the African American youth and educate them about the status quo and how the situation in America could be challenged and ultimately changed to a more equal society. Over the years, hip-hop artists have built a platform by always being honest, speaking their minds and particularly by the ―keepin‘ it real‖ ideology and thus gained deserved respect. The fact that music has always been all pervasive in the lives of people of African and African American descents (and nowadays the particular importance of hip-hop music in the African American community), combined with the reality of preservation of racism by different means in many spheres of American society (whether it is done purposely or not), leads to one important conclusion: hip-hop and the continual existence of racism in

American society are closely interconnected. Whether it is through the

―mainstream‖ which is often promoting the racist imagery of African Americans or the ―underground‖ which exposes and fights these stereotypes and challenges the status quo, the connection is very strong and almost impossible to break. Thus, according to various hip-hop artists, the only hope lies within the ―post-hip-hop generation‖ which is expected to finally finish the fight for equality through the only medium currently known to them – hip-hop.

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English Summary

Racism has been a part of American history since the beginning of slavery. Despite the fact that the historically first African American was elected into the president‘s office in 2008, racism continues to be, even today, one of the major issues in American society. Even though racism is by many perceived as the problem of the past, its various manifestations prove exactly the opposite. A huge disparity between the way Caucasians and African Americans are regarded and treated continues to exist in America. There is an unequal opportunity for education, disproportionate sentencing for drug offences and police brutality carried out primarily against the people of African descent.

Moreover, the continuous racist stereotypical portrayal of African Americans even further exacerbates the problem.

Hip-hop music, the most prevalent part of hip-hop culture, emerged with a purpose to challenge the status quo and fight against oppression and inequality. Over the years, however, hip-hop music has diametrically changed its course. Eventually, at the end of the 1990s, hip-hop music split into what later became known as ―mainstream‖ – which portrays African Americans in a negative light and thus supports the racist and stereotypical imagery known from the slave era, and ―underground‖ – which actively defends the African

American community against this racist portrayal and fights for equality in all spheres of American society.

České resumé

Rasismus je součástí americké historie již od počátku otroctví. Navzdory tomu, že historicky první Afroameričan byl zvolen do úřadu prezidenta v roce

2008, rasismus je i dnes jedním z hlavních problémů americké společnosti.

I přesto, že rasismus je mnohými vnímán jako problém minulosti, jeho různé projevy v americké společnosti dokazují pravý opak. Je obrovský rozdíl mezi tím, jak jsou v Americe vnímáni běloši a Afroameričani a taktéž jaké mají životní podmínky. Jsou jim poskytnuté nerovné příležitosti pro vzdělávání, existují zde i nepřiměřené tresty za drogové trestní činy a taktéž policejní brutalita prováděna především proti Afriameričanům. Navíc, nekonečné stereotypní zobrazování

Afroameričanů, které je hodně rasistické, ještě zhoršuje tento problém.

Hip-hopová hudba, která je nejvýznamnější částí hip-hopové kultury, vznikla s cílem zpochybnit status quo a bojovat proti útlaku a nerovnosti ve společnosti. Nicméně, od jejího vzniku se hodně změnila. Na konci devadesátých let nastal rozkol a hip-hop se začal dělit na ―underground‖ a

―mainstream‖. ―Mainstream‖ Afroameričany neustále zobrazuje jen v negativním světle, a tím, v konečném důsledku, podporuje rasismus a diskriminaci.

―Underground‖, na druhé straně, aktivně brání afroamerickou komunitu proti tomuto rasistickému zobrazování a bojuje za rovnost ve všech sférách americké společnosti.