Oscar Winning Hip Hop Song Promotes 'Culture of Death'

Oakland - I applaud Denzel Washington, Sidney Poitier, and Will Smith for encouraging Terrance Howard not to perform with the rap group who won an Oscar for their song "It's Hard Out Here for a Pimp." It was embarrassing enough that such a song won an Oscar and that the group performed, but at least there were some in the industry willing to take a stand against the derogatory lyrics that have become far too common place in hip-hop.

Rap was once a subculture that most adults thought would be a passing fad. Now, hip-hop has become the dominant youth culture and a multibillion-dollar industry of music, clothes, jewelry, movies, and more. But the culture has denigrated into an embarrassing bastion of filth - promoting violence, drugs, irresponsible sex, excessive materialism, and delinquent behavior.

I am the director of The Mentoring Center, an agency that works with youth coming out of the juvenile justice system. We help youth come out of a criminal mentality, then connect them with vital resources needed to remain crime free and productive. One of the biggest obstacles we face is the strong attraction to a "Culture of Death" promoted by hip hop.

Although I can still be considered a member of the hip hop generation at the age of 32, when I was a teenager, rap was much different. Gone are the days when hip hop was about "Fighting the Power," wearing African medallions and honoring Black women as queens. Now lyrics glorify "bling, bling" materialism and refer to women with expletives.

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