Re−examining prejudice

University of California, San Diego has the smallest African−American population of the nine−campus University of California (UC) system: a meager three percent. It has been a statistic which as of late many black students have been very cognizant of.

On the night of Feb. 25, a noose was found hanging in Geisel Library on the University of California, San Diego (UCSD) campus. The incident triggered demonstrations by outraged students on campus and also drew widespread condemnation from professors and administrators who saw this as a despicable act of racial hatred. Admittedly, the motives behind this incident have yet to be confirmed as racially motivated; however the incident undeniably invoked vivid imagery of this country's violent racial history and understandably outraged and intimidated African−American students on campus. This was also only one in a string of other racial incidents on the UCSD campus, including a joint fraternity party that made a mockery of Black History Month by hosting a "Compton Cookout," encouraging guests to wear rapper−style clothing, including baggy clothes, jerseys, chains and gold teeth. Guests were also encouraged to start fights and drama, and chicken, watermelon and purple drink were the extent of the food that was to be served. For me, this is where a more nuanced controversy begins, one inextricably linked to popular media and specifically to rap music.

The ascendance of commercial rap in my lifetime has meant the projection of a narrow slice of African American life onto a larger American narrative. A widespread fascination with gangster elements of black culture present in rap music has led to the rapid homogenization of this musical genre. On the radio waves, where there was once a great diversity of voices and experiences in hip−hop, there are now almost exclusively artists boasting about criminal pasts and sexual exploits (there is of course a vibrant hip−hop culture outside the bounds of commercial hip−hop music).

It's interesting to note that over 70 percent of rap is purchased by white listeners; that is to say that the majority of its listeners presumably have limited experience with the content of the music they are listening to. The consequence of this statistical reality is disastrous: Many people see only a fraction of black life in poor urban centers as depicted in commercial rap with nothing against which to contrast it. This leaves listeners with a misleading and dangerous notion: that they understand the spectrum of life experiences "in the hood" through rap.

Here's a simple example to illustrate my point. Have you ever heard a rap song on the radio about the strong religious foundations of a particular community a rapper grew up in? How about the dynamics of public education at under−funded schools an entertainer attended? Or the importance of a strong nuclear family throughout an artist's life? As a listener of commercial rap, I would be pressed to find rhymes that speak to these points — let alone songs, even albums, dedicated to them. I would argue that these select topics are of equal, if not greater, importance than predatory gangster culture in the lives of many of the chosen commercial rappers of our day.

It is accurate to say that a majority of African Americans live in urban environments and also fair to suggest that the subjects harped upon by mainstream rappers are realities in many urban centers. It is, however, completely absurd to characterize the modern African American experience through mainstream rap culture; experiences of young African Americans within and outside of urban areas are complex and varied. As obvious as this may seem, this reality is frequently missed and in this instance, at UC San Diego, it was missed in an overtly racist manner.

In this framework it is then not surprising that fraternities at UC San Diego would host a joint party regurgitating stereotypes about black culture and assume that this behavior would not be scrutinized. These developments beg the question of whether there is a causal relationship between a lack of racial and ethnic diversity and prejudicial behaviors such as those unfolding at UC San Diego. Regardless, the actions of ignorant students at UC San Diego need to be understood both within the context of a school atmosphere in which racial incidents have been frequent but also within a larger culture wrought with black stereotyping. Joshua Reed−Diawuoh is a freshman who has not yet declared a major.

--

Joshua Reed-Diawuoh is a freshman who has not yet declared a major.