Black Hip Hop

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KGol7fha8uk

Something we talked about in my gender woman studies class was black hip hop and what the media is portraying about it. bell hooks says that misogyny and sexism is what makes hip hop popular. For some sad reason that's what sells. Basically if you find a product that makes a lot of money keep making the product whether you believe in it or not. In the documentary about black hip hop the reporter goes to the big corporation and everyone avoids the question of rap videos demeaning women. Nelly is supposed to go to a school in Georgia for his fundraising event but when some students ask him to speak and answer questions about his videos he declines and does not show up. This shows how people would rather stay ignorant and make money and not question the message they are sending out to millions of viewers at home. bell hooks also mentions how these hip hop videos use black female bodies as sexual objects. The reporter in the black hip hop video interviews an 18 year old about his thoughts on women and his answers are pretty disturbing. He says that he knows which girls are bitches and which are sistas and the bitches are the girls that are dressed provocatively and that they want to be touched. He then walks over to a girl in a bikini and grabs her butt. Females in the music videos are contributing to the commodification and the dehumanization of their bodies. It's a major problem if boys like the 18 year old who was interviewed really think like this.