It's simply a matter of Black and White
... Indeed, some Black musicians do advocate or at least sing about these types of behaviors, but so do White musicians. We only need to look at the music of such White artists as Britney Spears, and Christina Aguilera to see how violent and sexually explicit such music can be. A recent example is lyrics from Eminem’s song “Criminal,” where he sings, “My words are like a dagger with a jagged edge/ That'll stab you in the head whether you're a fag or lez/ Or the homosex, hermaph or a trans-a-vest/ Pants or dress hate fags?” Does explicit aggression and homophobia equate to something better than that of Black music that supports prostitution, drug abuse, and lawlessness? Obviously, this isn’t the case, but it’s rather pathetic that White culture has adopted such a “double-standard.” In addition, significant portions of White culture embrace and enjoy music like punk rock and heavy metal that are very similar in content to African American hip-hop and rap. White musicians like Marilyn Manson and bands like Korn, Insane Clown Posse, and Slipknot often advocate violence, suicide, or other dangerous behaviors. A recent song from Insane Clown Posse goes, “I got stabbed in the eye and you wadn't no where/And what about the time I got fucked/When I got shot in the throat...fuckin' sucked.” What sane person would consider these types of music even remotely better than that of rap, hip-hop, and R&B? Furthermore, we must also consider other types of African American music, which are often in sharp contrast to that of rap and hip-hop. Such music types include gospel, blues, and jazz, and often express the difficult struggles Blacks face and continue to face today rather than drugs, sex, or violence. These music styles deny the White perception that only White music like “pop rock” or “Christian rock” can be wholesome and enjoyable at the same time as well. Moreover, there are also a lot of White people that enjoy Black music. One only needs to go to a suburban high school and look at all the White people, rather amusingly, trying to be “ghetto” to see this. It seems ironic that much of the dominant White culture tries to emulate the subordinate Black culture, which many other Whites so enthusiastically criticize. The fact that the dominant White culture often mimics African American culture, while at the same time relegating it to a second-class status reveals that White culture is far from the superiority many associate with it. Thus, it is clear that though Black and White popular cultures are different, they do share some unique similarities. Another area of culture that has been exploited by White culture is that of professional athletics. In particular, we see this exploitation in the National Basketball Association, where Blacks predominate, and conversely where Whites are the minority. Blacks in the NBA represent the majority and are almost always the best players in the league. Thus, many White kids who enjoy basketball try to imitate their favorite players mannerisms and even copy their favorite player’s clothing and shoes. However, almost paradoxically, there are significant numbers of Whites who perceive the NBA and Black basketball stars as “thugs” and “criminals” as exemplified by the recent brawl between players and fans during any NBA game. Whether or not the majority of NBA players are really criminals is unlikely, but it seems rather trivial when we realize all of the scandals that have just recently affected Whites in sports. We only need to look at the recent scandal involving steroids that entails...