LatinaLista — The aftershocks of the statements made by Don Imus that got him banished from radio and television airwaves are dying down — and that’s a shame.
Not that I want the repentent Imus to have to relive his tragic downfall every waking moment but comments he made after the incident need to be remembered and addressed by everyone.
Don Imus
(Source: NYDailynews.com)
Imus said that rappers routinely “defame and demean black women” and call them “worse names than I ever did.”
He’s right.
However, it wasn’t long before the worst offenders of women, in the name of artistic freedom, sounded off about how their use of the word “ho” differed and wasn’t offensive compared to how Imus intended.
According to MTV, Snoop Dogg said that rappers “are not talking about no collegiate basketball girls who have made it to the next level in education and sports. We’re talking about ho’s that’s in the ‘hood that ain’t doing sh–, that’s trying to get a n—a for his money. These are two separate things.”
And this explanation makes it all right?
In a study Latina Lista cited in February, black girls don’t think it’s okay to demean them in rap music.
I wish young Latinas had the brains to see this lack of respect as well.
One quote in the study, revealed that among the three groups: Blacks, Whites and Hispanic girls, only 53% of Latinas believed the statement “Rap music videos portray Black women in bad and offensive ways,” compared to 66% of Black girls and 60% of White girls who believe the statement.
This week, a coalition of New Jersey ministers is taking what Imus started and creating a campaign to put a stop to the offensive lyrics directed at women in rap music.
According to the group, they will try to get radio stations to play more positive hip hop and less or none of the negative type.
Yet, there is only so much this group can do.
The real power lies in the hands of women and girls. If we don’t get enraged and demand changes then the message won’t be that powerful to radio stations and cable music channels.
The same will continue.
It’s bad enough that there are guys out there who think women and girls want to be treated and talked to as they see and hear in this music,, but it’s worse when there are girls who like to be treated as nothing more important than a piece of furniture — necessary but disposable.
