When many of us look at today's "black leadership", oftentimes our minds go directly to Jesse Jackson, Al Sharpton, and even Barack Obama. Although the names mentioned, have done an excellent job thus far in leading black america to where we are today, but who is to pick up the baton? The dynamic of today's black leadership is changing in ways that I'm sure many people would not have thought. It's Oprah opening schools in south africa, Jay-Z erecting education programs in marcey projects, and alicia keys fighting the plight of **** in africa through her music. Celebreties are stepping up in ways that we've never imagined. So the question I ask of you, do the people who you consider to be the leaders of Black America have to have all of the degrees our leaders have had in the past? Or is the ambition and determination that this new generation of leadership encompasss enough? What significance does black leadersip mean for you? Can you handle black inteliegencia VS. The Hip Hop Generation? I mean...Are you really ready for it? How do you think it will effect our lives in the future...Good, bad, ****, or do you even think the concept is viable?
Good post... I think that there have been a lot of well known people stepping up and taking responsibility where it's needed. Although there are some who are just doing it to be fashionable, I do think that celebrities can use their status and visibility to promote change.There has been a lot of criticism of the so-called hip hop generation and the entertainment industry, and not all of it is undeserved, but I think that there are as many people promoting positive agendas and real artistry as there are who are profiting from selling mediocre artists and tired stereotypes.The unique thing about the entertainment industry is that it, unlike many other avenues to wealth, tends to offer opportunities to people from all walks of life. So an artist that may otherwise had very little to look forward towards could suddenly be a multimillionaire. It's promising that many people in that situation are choosing to do something rather than nothing. Not an answer to all of our nation's problems but it's a start.
You know I thought I had this one figured out. I boxed everything into the talk about it, and do it groups. Then I had the pleasure of interviewing someone who would probaly consider himself in the hip hop culture, and boy did he school me...
He put it this way, back in the day, before all of our "rights" Blacks were one people. He said we didn't classify ourselves well-to-do, ghetto, etc. and neither did the rest of America. We were just Blacks.
He went back to civil rights, talking about all the people that struggled, suffered and died for these "rights" and it WAS a good cause. But one of the byproduct of "rights" is that it divided people.
So if you had a little money after we got "rights", you were trying to get out of what they started calling "the ghetto". If you wasn't trying to fit in main stream, didn't matter how smart you were, you became "ghetto".
Hip Hop came on the scene and had the nerve to talk about the Ghetto, the real Black experience, and whatever else taboo that they were thinking and the wedge got deeper. Now you really talking us and them. His point was, we are one!
The Ghetto, the projects, welfare, food stamps, dope dealers, babies having babies, affirmative action, no action, laid off, Glass celing, whatever....
Deal with it. We gotta deal with it.
That was another critical moment for me, never thought of it that way.
Hip Hop, Intelli (that word you said ), young, old, not sure all of that matters. It would be BORING if we were all alike. It's all about the motivation, intention and actions. Ok, that part is me.
), young, old, not sure all of that matters. It would be BORING if we were all alike. It's all about the motivation, intention and actions. Ok, that part is me.
