September 25, 2007 - Congress to Hold Hearings on Negative Portrayals Of Black Women in Media ( LUNCH UPDATE)

Congress finally got around to noticing the systematic dehumanization of Black women in popular culture and they are going to hold hearings about it. The hearing is currently titled, "From Imus to Industry: The Business of Stereotypes and Degradation." Once again, we have to send don Imus a fruit basket and a bottle of Champelle, he is like the gift that keeps on giving. Too bad Congress required a crusty old coot to get hearings like this.....but I digress.

Hearing, not yet officially announced and tentatively skedded for Sept. 25, will focus primarily on hip-hop lyrics and videos, which critics have frequently derided for explicit misogyny aimed largely at black women. Variety

This was what they were talking about when I used to participate in a weekly conference call with womens' and civil rights groups ( the ones mentioned in the article)..... BACK in July. This is a serious case of better late than never. It is going down on September 25, 2007. Folks contact the members of the committee, BOTH REPUBLICAN AND DEMOCRAT with "examples" . It is the House Subcommittee on Commerce, Trade and Consumer Protection. Ironically., it may be the Democrats with their noted ties to the entertainment industry that may be most reluctant to call these people on their crap(according to my sources).

Witnesses include toppers Philippe Dauman of Viacom, Doug Morris of Universal Music Group and Edgar Bronfman Jr. of Warner Music Group.

These are not lackeys like Debra Lee and Reginald Hudlin. These are the big boys and girls that are going to be on the hot seat. Seriously, those who have been waiting and watching to nail their azzes to the wall, this is your moment, you might not get another one.

For those of you not familiar with the corporatocracy, Viacom owns BET, MTV and VH1 home of the terrible trilogy, Flavor of Love, I love NY and Charm School. In other words this one man is responsible for putting Black folks back about 500 years, by HIMSELF! Like I said, you might not get another opportunity like this to have the Viacom CEO make an accounting for his actions. They probably won't make them testify under oath, but this should be very interesting.

Some folks have asked how they can get involved in the comments section. I have a couple of e-mails out asking how to go about doing that.

UPDATE: I spoke to TWO different committee staffers. The staffer working on the hearings for Congressman Rush's office, didn't respond to my e-mail and isn't taking my calls, but y'all know iI can hunt down the 411. So I went another direction folks over on the minority side of the committee and a staffer for the full committee ( The House Committee on Energy and Commerce, Chaired by Rep. Dingle out of IL) were extremely helpful and gave a ton of important info to those wanting to attend.

If you want to be a witness, according to the full committee staffer it looks like a long shot as the Chair probably already has a list of invitees, but you can always try by contacting Bobby Rush's office. Christian Fjeld is the staffer that was working on this when last I heard about this, his email is Christian.Fjeld@mail.house.gov. I sent him an email for alternative contact info, but he "stepped away from his desk" which is office speak for "I don't want to take your call." So email him to your heart's content. Right now, the only known witness is Master P ( WTF???)I sat in on some of the early discussions about the hearings back in July and am aware of the source of some of the potential witnesses, but it never hurts to try. You have until September 25th. God Luck with that!

Although Representative Rush's office was unhelpful in getting you guys any additional information on the hearings, undaunted, I called the full committee and also accidentally got transferred to the minority members' office ie THE REPUBLICANS at some point and they were MORE THAN HAPPY to tell ALL. Surprisingly so. So here is the 411.

The date is not firm YET but pretty much so. Both my sources said that the date was not definitely set in stone. The September 25th date could change. In fact the staffer for the full committee was surprised that it had been reported in Variety, he said to keep checking the full committee's website. He also said I could call him anytime and he would give us an update on where we are in the process. They have to give at least 72 hours notice, but there should be more than that so those of you considering traveling to DC might want to hold off about a week before booking a ticket.

Seating During the Hearings
The seating is on a first come first serve basis. Depending on which room they select, the room will either hold 75 or 150 people. Based on their past experience, they are saying get there atleast 2 hours early to guarantee a seat. This would be in the Rayburn Building. now one of them told me that you can't bring a camera,b ut you CAN bring a laptop. That makes no sense, but I will do additional research on that.

I suggest folks go up there two hours early as a group an chill out. I'll maybe even produce a special bright pink T-shirt for the occasion. They said folks could line up at the door. ROAD TRIP! So get on the horn and let ere' body know! This is like Hailey's Comet. An opportunity like this comes around once every 75 years or so. Those of you who have been ticked off with Viacom, this is your moment.

While there is only on Chair of the subcommittee, there are tons of other members who get to ask questions as well. You might get frozen out by Rush's office, but there is nothing to stop you from contacting other members of the Committe e and you might actually get more assistance from the Republicans ( weird, but apparently true). They don't have a dog in this fight.

I'll keep you updated, y'all do the same.

You Must Hear this..."My Letter to Hip Hop" by Bridget Gray Poetry

Just as I was about to put that Canadian citizenship application in the mail, one of my readers sent this to me. I'm crying right now. There is hope. Sweet Jesus!



Her name is Bridget Gray and she is taking no prisoners! I might not have to move to the Rockies and live off the land after all. She has a website and a CD out. You can listen to her music/poetry on her myspace page. She is currently on tour. Oh SHE MUST BE HEARD! I might have to unclamp the pocketbook and cop it. Thanks Janice for the heads up.

UPDATE: BUMP THAT! She needs to be on the radio. Call your local hip hop radio station and ask to speak to the station/programming manager and ask why you have not heard her tracks on their station. Ask them why they are discriminating against artists who ain't talking about pimping, slanging hash, and drugs. I am about to call now. matter of fact e-mail them. Hell. Just what I need, another campaign.

Al Sharpton and David Banner in a Cage Match... Who Wins?

Just when I thought I would never laugh again after the subject matter I have been covering recently, my favorite pompadoured preacha' rides to the rescue again.

For those of you new to the blog, our original focus was the negative portrayal of African American women in popular culture, Hip Hop in particular- Hence our first T-shirt: Stop Funding Foolishness- Stop Misogyny in Music. We have digressed from that original purpose, but that's a good thing in my eyes.

Anyway, I've laid off of the Hip Hop Industrial Complex in the past month and a half or so because I was otherwise engaged battling a certain amoral television network and a certain show that shall never be named on this blog again. However, where I have left off, the good Rev. has picked up and the Hip Hop Industrial Complex is not happy and they are speaking out... and they are directing their ire at my favorite preacha, the Rev. Sharpton. Recently David Banner, young fool that he is decided to take on the Rev. Al :

The next time you see Al Sharpton, tell him I said @#*$ him and he can suck my @#*$, " an animated David Banner told SOHH.com. "I might change the name of my album from The Greatest Story Never Told to @#*$ Al Sharpton. I hate Al Sharpton. This is the kind of @#!* that I'm talking about. They're killing kids in New Jersey and all across the country and all a @#*$% got to talk about is rap lyrics? @#*$ that about they're our elders and we gotta respect them. I'm tired of this. They're like the parents, but the parents are crucifying the kids. (SOURCE)

So young, so gifted, so Black, so articulate! Joe Biden would be proud. However, this is Al Sharpton who grew up on the mean streets of NYC or thereabouts. This Man of the Cloth wasn't going to take that. Oh No he was not!

From time to time we do encounter people that have sexual fantasies about Reverend Al Sharpton, but they are always women and Crump’s proposition is a first. However, in keeping with the National Action Network’s Decency Initiative, I am sure Rev. Sharpton would not call Crump the “N” “B” or “H” word. And, despite Crump’s personal request, I am sure Reverend Sharpton would not call him a f-g–t. He would just pray for him. We at NAN are pro civil rights for everyone, even Levell Crump who has not had a banner year since his debut album in 2003. Kirsten John-Foy, a leader with Sharpton's National Action Network and the head of his Criminal Justice Initiative (SOURCE)

SNAP, they pulled out Banner's given name ( the one on the birth certificate) and er' thing. Oh. No. They. Didn't! (Yes. They. Did!)

Now Hip Hop heads, let me remind you that while he sports a relaxer, the Rev. Sharpton is no C. Delores Tucker. There will be no weeping or lawsuit filing out of the Good Rev. when you call him out of his name. You are his meal ticket right now and do not doubt that he will trample you and small children in order to creep out of the shadow of his arch nemesis the Rev. Jackson and young up starts like a certain candidate for President that will not be mentioned on this blog for the foreseeable future.

Let me also remind you that his hustlin' and camera-whoring tendencies aside, the Rev. Sharpton is no wimp and he ain't stupid either and if he has to stomp each and every rap artist into the ground to get one more dollar or one more minute in the glare of the camera lights, he will do it. So while I question his motives, I don't question his dedication to achieving his goal of world domination. In other words Hip Hop Industrial Complex, if you wanna fight in the gutter, the Rev. Al is more than happy to hop down there with cha, or atleast send out his subordinates to do it for him.

Now those of you who think that David Banner could take Rev. Al in a cage match, let me remind you that there will only be hand to hand combat. Mr. Banner and his generation are used to weapons of the firearm variety whereas the Good Rev. is probably well trained in the art of fisticuffs. Not to mention the Good Rev. served hard time in federal prison. He didn't do the Jesse Jackson, released on your own recognizance kinda protest where you never make it past the booking Sergeant's desk. Rev. Al got a prisoner number and the uniform to match courtesy of the Bureau of Federal Prisons. So the Good Rev. has done more hard time than most of these Hip Hop "artists."

Y'all know there are about 25 Hip Hop" artists" in the studio right now cranking out dis tracks about the Good Rev. That is their M.O. Like I said. Rev. Al is no C. Delores Tucker. His counter offensive was stone cold folks, he struck straight to the heart of every homophobic Hip Hop artist r by basically saying that David Banner wanted to have sexual relations with the Good Rev. OUCH! Rev. Al is not playing with y'all. You better ask somebody! (BTW. What women are having fantasies about Rev. Al?? WTH? MIND BLEACH PLEASE! Kirsten John-Foy is on crack for providing us with that visual! )

Now I thought I was going to be selling tickets to see the "Showdown in Chi-Town " now that Rev. Sharpton has expanded the Sharpton Brand and set up shop in Rev. Jackson's backyard, but alas this may be even better.

So in a cage match between ANY Hip Hop "artist" and the Good Rev, I got $20 on Rev. Al.

We'll get back to gloom and doom and man's inhumanity to wo(man) later today, but man I needed this. I was beginning to wonder if I would ever laugh again for real. I am sure some of y'all were wondering too. But thanks to Rev. Al, I hope we all realize that babies are still being born, people are still kind and compassionate, folks are still falling in love, and the ocean still laps at the shore.

DL HUGHLEY
Speaking of the Rev. Al. D.L. Hughley finally was read a portion of the statement the Good Rev. issued to us about four months ago after Sharpton Watch.... DL. Was not amused. The reporter actually posed questions I raised directly to DL which was refreshing. You will note that DL could not recite the first five words of the First Amendment that he is so dedicated to protecting. That question came straight from moi. I challenged the reporter to ask him and he did. He called WAOD - one lady with an e-mail page. BWAH! My question is this, why couldn't sisters have gotten this kind of interview out of Essence Magazine?

DUNBAR VILLAGE VICTIM'S ASSISTANCE FUND
Let me remind you that you can help the Dunbar Village victims by donating to their Victim's Assistance Fund. Read about the ease with which I was able to make my donation at a Wachovia branch in my town.

Checks can be made payable to the Dunbar Village Victim Assistance Fund-St. Ann. They can be dropped off at any Wachovia branch or mailed to: St. Ann Catholic Church, 310 N. Olive Ave., West Palm Beach, FL 33401. The church’s phone number is (561) 832-3757. (SOURCE)

WARNING: This post may be dripping with sarcasm. So let me save you the trouble of chastising me "boo birds". I don't care. Keep moving along, you will get no carrion here today.

Mainstream Media & Hip-Hop Boycott Petition

I was surfing on Afrobella and found an open letter to Hip Hop. In the comments section I found a link to a petition against degradation in hip hop. I thought I would post a portion of the petition here. Stop by and support these folks. People everywhere are outraged. We just need to be organized for change. They were up to 1256 when I signed.

To: BET, MTV, VH-1, and Mainstream Radio

As members & supporters of the Black community, we the undersigned wish to express our outrage against the numerous rap artists whose lyrics and videos degrade women, Black women in particular, as well as themselves. Their incessant use of the terms ‘nigger', ‘bitch, and ‘ho' degrade the Black community. We also denounce their promotion of drug dealing and the poisonous culture of violence they perpetuate.

We realize freedom of speech is a value held dearly by all in the United States of America. That same freedom of speech which allows these artists to spew their poison is the same freedom that allows us to stand up and say: "ENOUGH IS ENOUGH!"

We do not advocate censorship. We are advocating responsibility. Know that this promotion of prison culture has affected our youth. We must put the future of the Black community first!

AS SUCH, WE WILL NO LONGER SUPPORT ARTISTS AND MEDIA OUTLETS WHO PROMOTE STEREOTYPICALLY DEMEANING IMAGES OF BLACK WOMEN !!

WE WILL NOT PURCHASE MUSIC THAT CATEGORICALLY INSULTS US!!

WE WILL BOYCOTT BET, MTV, VH-1, MAINSTREAM RADIO, AND ANY OTHER MEDIA OUTLET THAT SUPPORTS AND PROMOTES ARTISTS WHO MALIGN, DEBASE, AND OTHERWISE DISRESPECT BLACK PEOPLE!!

WE ARE SPEAKING OUT AGAINST A CULTURE THAT HAS BEEN HIJACKED AND TURNED INTO A VEHICLE OF HARM AND DEGRADATION OF AN ENTIRE PEOPLE!

In the great tradition of our ancestors who began the Birmingham bus boycott, we will not financially patronize or support any entity that discriminates against us and/or disrespects our people!!

Featured Activism of the Day!

Today we're featuring another group actively engaged in combating the WAR ON BLACK WOMEN. They are called the SpiritHouse. and they have launched the Our Name is Our Own Campaign.

On the tails of the hurtful words of Don Imus, the Our Name is Our Own Campaign™ will target the systemic level of this habitual branding, and how it sabotages the work of social justice and obscures the vision for our common dreams. This grassroots campaign will be unveiled by Ruby Sales -- acclaimed civil rights activist, social critic, public theologian and history maker

Drop by and read about what they are all about. If you know of another group working it out, let me know.

Featured Activism of the Day!

Evia is sponsoring a campaign to contact the Federal Communications Commission. Stop by her blog and take part in her campaign.

Sistas, please stay tuned for some FCC (Federal Communications Commission) e-mail addresses that I'll be posting later today to which we MUST write in order for them to know how we feel about all of the SMUT talk on the air waves that denigrates, debases, degrades, and defames Black women. You've got to be explicit and let them know that this constant bombardment causes us PAIN. Let's not be cute about this.
Evia

If you know of someone else who has a campaign to take ACTION right now, let me know and I will post it.

After Imus: Now What?

Was anyone else discouraged after Oprah’s Town Hall Meeting ?

I think there plenty of us that are equally outraged about the portrayal of African American women in popular culture . Now we need to get organized. It is time to DEFUND THE WAR ON BLACK WOMEN! Period. End of discussion. This isn’t about artistic expression. This is about capitalism. People have a right to basically say whatever they want to, but I don’t have to subsidize it in any way. Hence the term “starving artist.”

I know that there are countless groups throughout the nation that have been fighting the good fight and have gone relatively unnoticed by MSM ( mainstream media). Nor do I think we can rely on black men to lead the charge. So if you or your organization has started a local, regional, or national effort to take ACTION, let me know and I’ll post it on this blog. If you already have a distribution list to issue calls to action. Let me know, I’ll post it. I am not trying to create a new organization, just serve as a conduit to connect like- minded people together. My technical abilities are rather limited and I have the attention span of knat, but I can manage to post on a blog to get this started. We need a Moveon.org or EMILY’s List for black women.

I’m not interested in any committees, dialogues, commissions or a task force. Those are just ways to wear passionate people out. Diane Weathers said black women should take the lead in this fight. What are we going to DO now?