BET: Black Embarassing Television

“Hide yo’ kids, hide yo’ wives…” I bet many of you can finish the lyrics to that song. That is Antoine Dodson, You Tube sensation who came to fame after his sister was raped. Because of the infamous song, Antoine Dodson was featured at BET Awards, the BET Hip Hop Awards, the Today Show on NBC, and a host of other interviews, performances, and appearances.

Antoine Dodson. He is just another over the top, stereotypical, flamboyant Black guy giving Black people a bad name. First, he comes on the television with all this attitude and sassiness. “OBVIOUSSSSLLLY, we have a rapist in Lincoln Park.” That was the first thing out of Antoine’s mouth when the camera focused on him. Why did he have to do all that? As we say in the District of Columbia, he was “doing too much.” This was a battle Mr. Dodson had no business in fighting. I can understand him wanting to be the overprotective brother, but honestly, he just wanted camera time. Because of his new found fame, BET has endorsed him and offered him awards as if he was a REAL musical artist.

Then, BET: Black Embarrassing Television, disgusts me in a lot of ways. Don’t get me wrong, I do enjoy some of the shows and award shows. However, when I turned to the 2010 Hip Hop Awards and saw Antoine Dodson performing, a look of disgusts came over my face. What was he doing there? Antoine Dodson is NOT a hip hop artist and he has never released a hip hop song. But there he was on the stage, dancing and singing merrily: “He’s climbin’ in yo’ windows, he’s snatchin’ yo’ people up! So, hide yo’ kids, hide yo’ wives, hide yo’ kids, hide yo’ wives, and hide yo’ husbands too, cause they raping everybody out here.” BET obviously thought this was entertaining, but if you want to uplift and inspire the Black community, give the children more positive role models.

That leads into the discussion of Blacks in the media. Blacks are ridiculed in the media, and sometimes, it is because of themselves. Antoine Dodson is a prime example. If Blacks get on television and act like fools or if BET is only showcasing negative role models, other races will begin to categorize and stereotype all Blacks as the same. Antoine Dodson and BET have both disappointed me. While Antoine Dodson’s primary goal was not to be a representative for Blacks, BET believes that that is their job. BET, you are doing your job poorly. If you want to be the voice of the Black community, show the positive role models and let me people see there are other opportunities out there for them besides being an entertainer. BET has to do better.

The representation of Blacks in the media is fairly bad. I know that some news channels choose to omit information about Black families, but whenever there are Blacks on television, a majority of the time, what is shown is not a positive image. As a Black person, we have to do better so that the media gives us more opportunities to get our story told.

Word Count: 528

"Ladies is pimps too; go and brush your shoulders off."

The quote above is by entrepreneur and rapper, Jay-Z. Recently, watching a video on the objectification of women in the music industry, the discussion brought up mixed feelings on the subject. Many believe that you can not mix those grimy hip-hop lyrics and chivalrous behavior; however, I believe that a woman can enjoy Lil Wayne and still not share his beliefs on women and life. 

Yes, Lil Wayne loves to call women bitches, and wants to only date red bones and yellow women. He loves to objectify women. I've been to five Lil Wayne concerts, since I was twelve, and I don't consider myself a bitch. I also do not only date light-skinned boys. I can rap every lyric of his, but I do not believe in what he says. Lil Wayne is an entertainer--his job is to entertain others. He is not an educator. While music can influence what you think, America is becoming too sensitive. Every time a video is directed, a song produced, or something is shown on television, someone wants to come out and say how inappropriate it is for their children or how it is brainwashing future generations. We have to leave some blame to the parent.

Parents should censor what their children watch if they care that much about the lyrics and videos. If you’re son or daughter begins to believe they are a hustler, bitch, hoe, etc., then you have failed as a parent. Don’t blame Lil Wayne, Jay-Z, or any other rapper; blame yourself. As a society, we are too quick to blame someone else for our issues, especially the media. There have been thousands of debates on the influence of media, and the “winning” argument remains the same: Media is a bad influence on kids. WRONG! Parents who don’t monitor their children and try to instill the right values in them are bad influences on children.

Then, there is the old argument about the representation of females in the media. Females are objectified in all genres of music, including rock and hip-hop. Turn to any music video channel, and 75% of the time, women are half-naked, lusting after some guy with a lot of money who boasts their great sex skills and stacks of cash. But there are women in the media who objectify men. Lil Kim, Missy Elliot, and Remy Ma are the perfect example. They constantly objectify men in their music, using them as sexual objects and flaunting their cash. Songs include, One Minute Man (Missy Elliot), almost any song from The Notorious K.I.M. (Lil Kim), and Conceited (Remy Ma).

As a woman, I understand where other women are coming from with the whole objectification idea, but I can’t agree. Women should begin to seek more positive role models, such as Hillary Clinton and Oprah Winfrey. Americans are being too sensitive. Every little remark is the objectification of women or inappropriate. Entertainers main goals are to entertain and they are going to do whatever to make money—no matter what it is. Women should learn to separate what they believe is right for them and what they believe is wrong.

Word Count: 524

"The Black Sheep"

While many Black kids encounter prejudice and racism at a young age, I was not one of those kids. After reading an incident on racism in schools, I was asked did I ever encounter racist acts such as being followed in a store or someone undermining my intelligence because of my race. Honestly, I haven't and why? Because I have the privilege of being light-skinned.

The privilege of being light-skinned? What does that mean? People don't discriminate against me because I'm of a lighter complexion.

I am superior within my race because I resemble White, which is perfection in society's eyes. While I wish this whole idea of dark skinned vs. light skinned discrimination wasn't true, I have to be honest with myself and it is true.

This idea is not a new concept. Light-skinned privilege dates back to slavery. Darker complexion slaves were forced to do strenuous, field work, while the lighter complexion slaves were more favorable, and subjected to house duties. Even today, society tells us that "Black is beautiful", with a photo of Beyonce. The underlying meaning is that, "Black is beautiful...but too much Black is ugly." When I turn on my television, light-skinned models are plastered all over commercials, television shows, and music videos. Even living in DC, I hear boys say, "A girl needs to pass the brown paper bag test if she wants to be with me." Blacks are already discriminated against enough, and society chooses to segregate Blacks even more by this idea of light-skinned privilege.

However, while it seems a privilege to some, I hated being light-skinned growing up. I stood out around my dark-skinned family. I was constantly being called Wonder Bread, white girl, and cracker by my cousins and siblings. When I went to school, I was the "white girl" out of my group of friends. I remember freshman year of high school, a white girl in my class got a slight tan, and everyone told her, "Wow, now you're more Black than Nichelle! You're darker than her! Nichelle you are White! “More Black? Me being White? It was definitely a weird experience for me, being called White by my Black AND White peers. For Christmas, a family member of mine gave me tanning oils so I could become darker. I am the Black sheep of my family and friends—no pun intended.

The question I constantly ask myself, "Is where do I fit in?" I'm not light enough to be White, but I'm not dark enough to be Black. The solution to this question is simple: If America looked past complexion and race, then society would be better. People should learn to not judge others by what they look like, but what they do and who they are. Even though Martin Luther King quotes are overused, one quote is true: "You should judge others not by the color of their skin, but by the content of their character." Although I know America is a long way from ending internal racism and racism overall, the first step is acceptance of others despite the way they look.

Empowerment

Empowerment. I hear the word constantly. What exactly is empowerment:

To the dictionary: em-pow-er, v. give someone the authority or power to do something; make someone stronger and more confident, esp. in controlling their life and claiming their rights - em-pow-er-ment, noun

To me? 

I am not Webster. I can't give you a clear definition on what empowerment is. I can give you what the feeling is. Empowerment feels like freedom and happiness. Empowerment takes me back to those days when I was five years old, being free, living without a care in the world. I would paint on my grandmother's walls and sing anything on the radio, and no one could tell me I was wrong. To be honest, I felt more empowered when I was 5 than 14. Why? When I was 5, there were no pressures on me; no one was telling me what I should be like or what I should look like. I was confident and free--or empowered.

As I got older, I felt less empowered. I felt like I was conforming to what everyone wanted me to be, and not who I was supposed to be. As a teenager, many of us go through identity issues, and I think I was facing mine. I felt like someone else was controlling my life, and not I. Once I became a sophomore in high school, I was able to create my own identity and achieve empowerment. I did my own thing because I was becoming more comfortable with who I was, and I was finally becoming free and happy with myself.

I am my biggest obstacle when it comes to achieving my empowerment. I don't like blaming others and things for my problems--and it 'takes two to tango' as my mother would say. I let people control who I was at an age when I knew the difference between the right and wrong people. I accepted everything people told me and I did everything people said. I was not Nichelle. I was another person; a shadow of another person. I lacked my own beliefs and thoughts, and restriction of the mind contradicts empowerment. 

Today, I'm not fully empowered, but I'm more than half-way there. I am more confident in myself, and I smile a little harder and a little more. I do what I want, and I enjoy doing it. I have my own beliefs, and I feel like that 5 year old girl again. I feel free and happy. I am happy and free. 

Source: http://www.baconbabble.com/index.php/2009/08/21/kids-2/