It's good to see hip-hop stars standing up against homophobia. But spreading misinformation about how AIDS is transmitted in the black community helps no one.
On 9/11, I saw the Towers fall from my classroom window. On 5/2, I discovered that racism against Middle Eastern and South Asian people in America is as alive as ever.
Belly says, "If this puts me in the line of fire, then so be it. I felt I had to do this. I represent Arabs who don't want war, who are just like everybody else and that is 99% of us. I want people to see and hear that perspective."
Dr. Edward Rhymes, Black Agenda Report. June 26, 2007.
The public is far more disturbed by misogynistic lyrics in rap music than in rock music -- the domain of white musicians. Seems it isn't sexism that the dominant culture is opposed to, but rather the black voices communicating the message.
It's annoying that whenever hip hop is criticized, the worst examples are held up for ridicule. Talking about pop gangsta rap as if it were synonymous with "black hip hop" is like talking about Kenny G as if he were representative of all jazz.
