Background
for Teachers
In this module students are challenged to explore the ethical implications
of the misogyny and sexism that are pervasive in “commercial”
rap music and its impact on those who embrace hip-hop culture. Since
its inception a myriad set of ills that plague communities-of-color,
particularly African-American urban communities, have been attributed
to Hip-Hop. Examples of these ills include higher crime rates, higher
incidences of sexual activity among young teens/adults, misogyny
and homophobia in lyrical content, higher incarceration rates, higher
drop-out rates, and even Don Imus’ insult of the Rutgers’
Women’s Basketball Team. While
this module does not cover all of these ills, its emphasis on
misogyny and sexism encourages students to become informed consumers
whose consumption is based on more than a “perfect beat”.
This
generation of high schools students may not be aware of the origins
or history of Hip-Hop culture and rap music. This module through
blogs, articles, audio and video footage explores the evolution
of Hip-Hop culture from a focus on inequity, racism, and self-empowerment
to the current emergence of what is described as the “bling”
era. The word bling has invaded the lexicon and reflects an excessive
and conspicuous display of wealth in the form of expensive jewels
(conflict diamonds in some instances), luxury cars, expensive
champagne and the ability to live a “jet-setting”
lifestyle that allows the male who possesses “bling”
to spend it lavishly on very beautiful and voluptuous young women,
who are portrayed as objects for possession.
This
module will offer examples of current existing attitudes toward
Hip-Hop culture which reveal that it continues to be perceived
by older generations in a negative light but remains a tremendous
example of the transformational abilities of a “youth movement”
to successfully challenge the status quo. The spread of Hip-Hop
around the globe and its successful utilization by youth around
the world as a method of resistance and empowerment, suggests
that there are overarching ethics and values beyond misogyny and
sexism, that may be useful for younger generations.
Although
there are several topical areas within hip-hop culture that could
be examined in an ethics module, this module will focus on the
ethical implications of the misogyny and sexism pervasive in commercial/mainstream
hip-hop lyrical content and visual imagery. This focus is timely/timeless
in light of the existing controversy surrounding the firing of
Don Imus after he used derogatory sexist and racist terms to describe
the women’s basketball team at Rutgers University. Don Imus
partly blamed his ethical lapse on the pervasive use of the terms
in rap lyrics and hip-hop culture.
This
module will provide an opportunity for students to examine the
influence of rap music and rap music videos on their own attitudes
and behavior. While a majority of black youth indicate that they
view music videos on a daily basis, survey results collected by
researchers at the University of Chicago for the Black Youth Project
reveal that many black youth are turned-off by the misogyny and
sexism displayed/portrayed in rap videos.
This
module is designed to develop student skills in deconstructing,
interrogating, and engaging the ethics and values of hip-hop as
a youth movement. Students will develop their creative and critical
thinking skills as required by the Florida standards, to identify
both the positive and negative aspects of hip-hop culture and
by also developing skills in recognizing, articulating, and challenging
the inherent value conflicts that exist in hip-hop, as related
to the manner in which these value conflicts shape the individual
ethics of their peers and themselves.
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