THE BLACK MAN IN AMERICA: AS SEEN THROUGH THE EYES OF HOLLYWOOD

This post is going to be kind of vague because I really don't feel like detailing too much, so bare with me.

I know this particular topic gets touched on a lot, but I recently posted the picture of Kanye West and it brought up a lot of pondering questions. It seems like we pay too much attention to rappers or artist that hit the stage or film dressed in feminine attire, but what is the root of this? I feel like the black man in America will lose his identity, and leave it up to Hollywood and the governement to decide how we should be as men.

A majority of brothers don't have fathers or father figures. That alone means we have an entire generation of young men that will not know what direction to go into because that crucial entity is absent in their lives. I don't really want to get into all the statistics, we all know the facts. My question is how can we change this? I think I have an answer. Its not the most popular one, but its better than nothing.

I feel like media, Hollywood and the United States Government has destroyed the black community in America, and if not the rest of the world. The people are hurt. The Willie Lynch Letter has proven true on all accounts and its no better time than now to take a stand and uplift the people. President Obama set a great example for the people, but his competition is strong. One black man can't change the world, especially when you have thousands of black men chasing after fame, fortune, and materialistic things.

Click Here To Read Entire Letter

Its a neverending battle. This isn't the 60's, yet we are still fighting for our civil rights (The Murder of Troy Davis). The government has killed a majority of black leaders such as Huey, Martin, Malcolm, Tupac, etc. I feel like the hope is almost gone. It's definitely up to Generation X to take back what is being withheld. We've lived through the Reagan Era, The Crack Epidemic, and 3 wars in the past 30 years.I had the pleasure to attend the Eugene B. Redmond Writer's Club 25th Birthday Celebration last week and was blessed with the inspiration given by Dr. Haki Madhubuti and Amiri Baraka. Mr. Baraka said it best when he explained how he loved what hip-hop stood for but was saddened at how the corporations got it and corrupted it. Dr. Madhubuti also touched me when he remind us that if we don't keep our story alive, no one will.

 Amiri Baraka  | Me

We lost our way somewhere. Spike Lee Joints captured the late 80's, and those cinematic classics got traded in for Tyler Perry Productions. I just don't get it. Black men in America, if you are reading this, we have to take back our communities. We have to stop being so Hollywood and be men. We need to stop putting on the dress and acting like women. We must be men. It gets said over and over and over, but its serious. Our sons need to know what it means to be a man. Our daughters need to recognize what a man looks like and does. If we can do that, just instill a little self-respect, the rest will be easy. We don't need to look at hip-hop stars as role models or for guidance. If you are an artist, then make art for God, yourself, and your people so they can recieve it as a blessing. We have to stop mimicing the things we see on television and the words we hear on radio. Most of it is just poison. We are such a chosen people.

This rant has gotten a little of course, but understand the place where this is coming from. I just want Black Men to take a stand and stop giving in to what the media tells us to do. I used to hear a lot of artist say they wanted to get their songs on the radio, and I would tell them, "They play the same songs on the radio, you should try to be different."

If we are to be artist and express ourselves as such, we need to stop letting Hollywood define us. In other NEWS: we need to start disciplining our children and teaching them about God's will. Let's rebuild Black Hollywood. Let's rebuild Black Wall Street. Let's just get back to a simplier time when men didn't wear dresses.

(P.S.- Sorry for getting off the subject, it happens.)