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Wednesday, April 18, 2007 12:00 AM

Is rap racist?

Is rap racist?

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  • Wednesday, April 18, 2007 11:35 AM

    I happen to *be* a Black person

    I know you mean well, but that's a very good example of what I'm talking about (I think... more paragraph breaks, man.)

    The idea that it's necessary or possible to "Know what Black people are like." It's outmoded and was always false. Louis Armstrong, Sidney Poitier, Denzel Washington, Michael Jordan... how many Black people need to be forced to carry the flag for all Black people before you "get a feel for what we're like." Why, after contributing to American culture for more than 400 years, do we all have to be on our best behavior, lest some pickpocket-kid in NYC reflect poorly on my nephew in VA? Why have Black people gone along with this for decades?

    I'm not saying it's *impossible* to get bad ideas from pop culture. I'm saying we shouldn't treat that as a reasonable position. I'm not (nor is Lil Jon or Ludacris) personally responsible for what prejudiced people think, they are.

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