The Boondocks

The Boondocks cartoon show flirts between the lines of comedy and degradation of the black community. The Boondocks has drawn a large audience, in only its second season, making it one of the most popular cartoons on adult swim. Targeting a diverse audience, it has drawn both negative and positive attention, including the Reverend Al Sharpton. Aaron McGruder, the creator, started the comic strip series initially trying to create a humor he felt was lacking in modern society. His “black political satire” created just that. His series has been taken by the black audience as just mere humor. They fail to realize that they are not supposed to accept this behavior of ignorance. The satire is designed to change this behavior of ignorance. The Boondocks makes fun of the black culture and what I see around me are black people laughing at it in emptiness, unaware of the satire that mimics and mocks their culture. The initial aim of this popular comic series did not receive the response intended by those groups McGruder means to aim for.

With topics such as the R. Kelly incident or the MLK episode, these controversial issues tend to raise eyebrows. Different groups have taken this show to offense, calling it “racist” and over exaggerated. Satirically, McGruder purposely embellishes on the antics black people as a whole engage in, so he can show them how much of a fool they make out of themselves. In the MLK episode Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. wakes up from a comma stunned and some what upset at the fact that all he had worked for had been for naught. Dr. King comes to realize that all he preached and promoted during the civil rights era has been disregarded in this new age. The streets that are named after him seemed to be the unsafe areas in neighborhoods and bettering the black culture seemed to be last on everyone’s list. At the end of the episode there is a new rendition of the “I have a Dream” speech, were Dr. King complains that he received all those “ass whopping” for nothing. Instead of being “freed from the thirst of oppression” he discovers that all his findings turned out to be “a bunch of triffinling…good for nothing niggas”. He tries to express to everyone that you should not want to be a ‘nigga’ because ‘nigga’ is a “living contradiction, filled with unfulfilled ambitions, niggas love to hear themselves talk but hate to complain, niggas love to be another mans judge in jury, niggas love to procrastinate until its time to worry, niggas love to be late, niggas hate to hurry…”. It ends with Dr. King walking out and fleeing to Canada, and all the ‘niggas’ surprisingly revolt and a wave of change sweeps the black race. Then on November 8, 2020 Oprah Winfrey is elected president.

This episode was the most educationally filled. The segregation amongst blacks is prevelant; it is as though they cannot see what is being hidden. The problems we had four decades ago might not be as visible as the past but they are still here. The issue of calling other blacks ‘niggas’ or the betterment of black culture was something McGruder focused on in this episode, calling it ignorance. He tries to show the black culture a reflection on what they have become. They have become fools who choose not to improve. Not the entire black race has become this but the majority that the media and others out side of the culture focus on is the groups that show this ‘ignorance’. The show is genius and I can only hope it stays that way as the popularity for the show grows, a reality check is needed for this generation of uninspired youth. What better way to get through to them than through truth in cartoons.

Mondays 10:30pm Cartoon Network Adult Swim

Trouble

Trouble

Music is a form of expression, a way of relating your emotions to a lyrical beat that moves you both mentally and physically. I would like to say music makes you think and wonder about the endless possibilities in every aspect of life. In the rap industry you have artists who talk of varies topics such as: money, cars, hoes, religion, morals, and society’s confinement on minorities. It is good to have a vast range of topics so that every audience member’s needs are meet. What troubles me is that what seems to be given the most attention in this industry is ‘bubblegum’ rappers. These rap artist glorify the use of drugs, put down women, and are fueled by greed. I understand that rapping is a job like any other, but if you see your ‘people’ struggling in poverty do not tell them to embrace this way of life. Instead, try to help them get out of this way of living. The industry promotes dumb down lyrics, sometimes uneducated, and down right dumb music.

What is so wrong about rappers that hit you with conscientious messages that make you contemplate your morals and those around you? What is gained from rapping about money or killing? There is no sense of enhancing for self with in the lyrics. People say they listen to what they relate to, and if it happens to be ‘gangster’ rap, then so be it. Why cant ‘backpack’ rappers be given the same limelight? Anyone who listens to rap is entitled to their own opinion, so why is it ‘uncool’ to listen to Talib, Little Brother, or Common. It is not that people do not relate to the music, just that these artists are not seen as the image the youth wants to become. Rarely do you see these artists on the Top 100 or on countdowns for music videos, because their type of rap is not promoted. Industries push the idea of ‘bubblegum’ rap so that the messages ‘backpack’ rappers speak on is hidden. It will remain their way because the media controls how the society functions.

I accept that people genuinely like ‘bubblegum’ rap, but the fact that we are different in certain areas, is what makes us individuals. I can only hope that one day people come to realize that ‘bubblegum’ rap is getting old. You can only talk about money, cars, and hoes to a certain extent until the social acceptance runs out. Then people will realize how much rap has been degraded, and hopefully work towards re-establishing the artistic appeal of America’s favorite genre of music.

80's Baby

A new age of fashion has arrived, fashion has repeated itself again. It seems as though the 80’s are coming back. The hip-hop fashion industry has revised the style of the 80’s, by forgetting the shoulder pads and the backward clothing. Nowadays you can see teens rocking the Gumby haircut or just a plan flat top. The neon colors and mismatched clothes is appealing to me, the tights with the off the shoulder sweaters puts a smirk on my face. If you look around you can see that the trend is spreading like wild fire and has been doing so for a while. With Vans and converse being worn left and right, it is starting to look like a uniform. Even though this sense of style is being recycled there is still a unique flare to it. I find it admirable that some boys are bold enough to get flat tops and wear thick gold chains with their Adidas track suits.

How it all started is questionable to me but I am not complaining. That’s less money being spent by me because all I have to do is rummage through my moms pile of clothes in the attic. Maybe it is because I am an 80’s baby that I fit right in with this years fashion because matching has never been a concern of mine. People may not agree with the 80’s fashion making a comeback, but that is their prerogative.

What I enjoy most about this sense of style is that you are able to innovate within this style and create your own sense of uniqueness. Mix and match with different eras to make it funky. Colorful and stylish, this fashion trend will accept almost anything.