Afrosphere Accurate Images Campaign

For Immediate Release

The Solutions Blog

http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com/

Black Bloggers Are Sick of BET and ‘Gangsta Crap’ Music

(New York): Black Bloggers have united to battle mainstream music and entertainment fat-cats who profit off the stereotypical, sexist, and racist exploitation of African American people. Their main targets are Black Entertainment Television (BET), who they call ‘Black Exploitation Television’, and gangsta rappers such as 50cent, Snoop Dog, The Game, and Cam’ron. These artists produce music bloggers have branded ‘gangsta crap’. Gangsta rap regularly glorifies sexism, the n-word, profanities, violence, drug use and dealing, sexism, and the dehumanization of Black men and women. Gangsta rap videos and stereotype-filled shows are the programming staples of BET.

“BET and hip hop have gone down hill. They were once inspirations. Now they purvey some of the most harmful anti-Black sentiments you will ever see or hear, and this has become a representation of mainstream Black culture,” says Bronze Trinity of the Afrosphere Bloggers Association (ABA). ABA is coordinating the Afrosphere Accurate Images campaign against BET and gangsta rap.

ABA member, Wayne Hicks criticized, “BET was an inspirational idea when it was first created. Tremendous shows providing news and information for the Black community. Today, BET is an embarrassment for the Black community. It is something that we hide from our children. Enough is enough”.

ABA bloggers want widespread changes in the television and music entertainment industries. They want BET to stop airing videos where half-naked women are objectified, Black men are shown as ‘thugs’ and ‘pimps’, and street violence, illegal drugs, and gang activity is glorified. The want the n-word and sexist epithets to be be censored when children under 18 are likely to be watching. ABA also wants radio stations to stop playing racist, violent, and sexist music, for mainstream record labels and artists to stop producing such music, and for positive/conscious hip hop to become the mainstream. “It’s time to rise above the corrupted caricatures painted onto the Black community, and reach within ourselves with self love and respect”, says ABA blogger Daz Wilson.

However the bloggers understand the fine line between artistic expression and free speech. Carole took a pledge against racist and sexist hip hop on her blog but stated, “I believe that artists and performers are free to speak their own minds. I’m not against free speech. But honestly, I wish there are folks who were a bit more responsible in their speech to kids because most kids are pretty undiscerning”.

The non-profit blogger group is battling media executives and multi-millionaire artists using internet activism in the form of blogs, message boards, email, and online petitions. On the ABA website http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com, the group suggests taking a pledge against sexist and racist hip hop, buying conscious hip hop from artists like Common, Mos Def, and Talib Kweli, advertising conscious artists on blogs, and requesting more radio play time for these artists. They also provide anti-BET stickers, instructions to boycott radio, television, and website sponsors, and numerous petitions so bloggers can show their support.

This is not just an American concern according to ABA member Adrianne, “Living overseas allows one to see how influential American pop culture is. Even in Sweden I see the young kids listening to and emulating the hip hop performers. Black artists do not need to export negative images of Black women around the world”. Other international members have reported stereotypes and negative behaviors caused by gangsta hip hop and television programming that is broadcast around the world.

ABA strongly supports recent activism of other groups such as What About Our Daughters blog, the Enough is Enough Campaign, and the National Action Network’s Day of Outrage Against the Music Industry. “The time has come for us to take back our image and for Black people to accept responsibility for the role they play in denigrating our own image,” proposed Bronze Trinity.

Contact Information: The Solutions Blog http://solutionsforourpeople.wordpress.com
Bronze Trinity at bronzetrinity@hotmail.com
Adrianne at http://blackwomenineurope.blogspot.com/
Carole at http://www.darkparables.blogspot.com
Daz Wilson at http://www.ultravioletunderground.com
Wayne Hicks at http://electronicvillage.blogspot.com/

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There are things you can do to help fight BET and the racism and sexism in hip hop

1) Post My Hip-Hop Sexism and Racism Denunciation (see below) on your blog or website or create your own version. Email it to everyone you know and to the media. Contact the media contacts on this list and tell them your opinion and what you want changed.
2) Post an-anti BET sticker on your blog or website. You can even make one yourself.

3) Learn about positive/conscious artists on the web or on Wikipedia. Maybe you will prefer this type of hip hop and you can tell others that there is an alternative to gangsta crap. You can also learn about the history of hip hop from PBS.
4) You can promote positive/conscious hip hop artists on your blog by writing about their music or advertising their new album releases. For instance, you can post this slide show of positive artists on your blog:

View or Get this slide show

Or you can promote the choice of positive/conscious artists by posting this image.

5) Sign these petitions to show your support: Change BET, Transform BET, Mainstream Media and Hip Hop Petition, Stop the racism in hip hop, and Stop the ban of real and intelligent hip hop on BET.

6) Watch the commercials aired during offensive programs or advertised on offensive web sites. Contact the sponsors and inform them that they are supporting racist and sexist material so that they stop sponsoring the program.
7) Stop buying racist and sexist music and ask others to do the same.
8 ) Do whatever you can to stop the racism and sexism purveyed by the mainstream media and gangsta rap music. If you are doing something that isn’t on this list please tell us about it!

My Hip-Hop Sexism and Racism Denunciation

I hereby solemnly declare that I will no longer purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume anything from musicians or comedians who continue to denigrate women of African descent by calling them hoe, slut, whore or any other misogynist epithet.

I also solemnly declare that I will no longer purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume anything from musicians or comedians who continue to denigrate people of African descent by using the N-word or condoning Black-on-Black violence.

I believe with all my heart that artists and performers who engage in such business do not respect women, people of African descent, or themselves. Their minds have been corrupted to a point that they accept and further the history of oppression that has been enacted upon women and People of Color for centuries. These people are corrupting our minds and our culture and I WILL NOT BE A PART OF IT!

From this moment on I will ONLY purchase, listen to, endorse, watch, or in any other way consume the works of musicians and comedians who present positive, uplifting, humorous, romantic, silly, interesting, creative, emotional, groundbreaking, remarkable, unusual, thought-provoking, challenging, or in any other way enjoyable content that DOES NOT debase women or people of African descent.

We Have Had Enough Of BET!!!

ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! CAMPAIGN TO RALLY OUTSIDE HOME OF BET EXECUTIVE

September 07, 2007

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE Contact:  Julia Pollard -  301 238-4826 ENOUGH IS ENOUGH! CAMPAIGN TO RALLY OUTSIDE HOME OF BET EXECUTIVE Washington DC — Determined to stop the entertainment industry from portraying negative images of black men and women, the “Enough is Enough!” Campaign will hold its first rally and demonstration at the Washington DC residence of Debra L. Lee, Chairman and CEO, Black Entertainment Television Networks. The demonstration will take place this Saturday, September 15th, at 1:00 p.m. A press conference will be held at the site of the rally, 2800 McGill Terrace, NW, Washington, DC at 2:00 p.m. Community leaders are fed up with derogatory media images of black men and women.  People of conscience and concern are encouraged to come out in support of this effort. The global marketing of negative images and stereotypes has created an environment in which portrayals of black men as “pimps, players, gangsters, thugs, drug dealers, etc…,” and black women as “strippers, whores, and objects for sexual exploitation” are becoming mainstream, acceptable images in the American popular imagination. The purpose of the campaign is to protest the commercialization and marketing of negative and derogatory images of black men and women in the entertainment industry.  Rev. Delman L. Coates, Ph.D., Organizer is championing this action.  Coates said, “The movement recognizes the power of media and entertainment corporations to shape American attitudes, opinions, behaviors, and even policies by and about people of color. Music companies do not equitably apply standards of obscenity for music that is offensive to blacks as for other groups.” The campaign contends that many American corporations sponsor, through endorsements and by advertising on radio and television outlets, artists who promote negative messages about black people, but would not provide sponsorship for artists who degrade other interest groups.  The campaign seeks to urge the entertainment industry and their corporate sponsors to be better corporate citizens. Weekly demonstrations will be held on Saturdays. ### For more information or to schedule an interview with Rev. Delman L. Coates regarding this campaign, visit the www.enoughisenoughcampaign.com website or send an email to: <!– var prefix = ‘ma’ + ‘il’ + ‘to’; var path = ‘hr’ + ‘ef’ + ‘=’; var addy69239 = ‘enoughisenoughcampaign’ + ‘@’; addy69239 = addy69239 + ‘hotmail’ + ‘.’ + ‘com’ + ‘.’ + ”; document.write( ‘‘ ); document.write( addy69239 ); document.write( ” ); //–>\n enoughisenoughcampaign@hotmail.com. <!– document.write( ‘‘ ); //–> This email address is being protected from spam bots, you need Javascript enabled to view it <!– document.write( ” ); //–>

August 7 Day of Outrage against the Music Industry

Hat tip to Black PR Wire

For Immediate Release
Saturday, August 04, 2007

Contact Information
Debra Toomer
305.218.2252

(BPRW) REVEREND AL SHARPTON AND NATIONAL ACTION NETWORK’S DECENCY INITIATIVE TO LEAD A 20-CITY VIGIL TO PROTEST THE USE OF WORDS “NIGGA” “BITCH” AND “HO” IN THE MUSIC RECORDING INDUSTRY

(BLACK PR WIRE) New York,NY (August 4,2007) – Reverend Al Sharpton, Founder and President of National Action Network (NAN), along with Tamika Mallory, Director of NAN’s Decency Initiative, has announced a national “Day of Outrage” against the continuous use in the music recording industry of the words “nigga,” “bitch” and “ho.” Reverend Sharpton, who has persistently challenged the entertainment industry on denigrating lyrics, will use August 7th to call for the withdrawal of public investments from companies that won’t clean up their act. In New York, one of the states where the event will take place, roughly $3 billion from the state pension fund is invested in the entertainment industry. According to Reverend Sharpton, “The idea of divesting State taxpayers’ money from record companies that have a double standard when it comes to language is something that will be a priority.” In April, Reverend Sharpton led the drive to have Don Imus fired from his syndicated radio show for calling the Rutgers University women’s basketball team “nappy-headed hos.”

The event on August 7th which is being held by National Action Network’s Decency Initiative will take to the streets in 20 cities across the country at 12 (Noon) to mount public pressure on the music industry to adopt a universal standard of respect for all people. The cities are New York City, Newark, NJ, Los Angeles, CA, Detroit, MI, Atlanta, GA, Miami, FL, Washington, DC, Dallas, TX, Jacksonville, FL, Las Vegas, NV, Kansas City, MO, Phoenix, AZ, Stamford, CT, Philadelphia, PA, Columbia, SC, Houston, TX, Richmond, VA, Baltimore, MD, and Augusta,
GA.

Since April, the Decency Initiative, in collaboration with dozens of activists across the nation, has demanded that the music recording industry eliminate the use of the offensive words “nigga,” “bitch,” and “ho” in all recordings. No other ethnic group is subjected to denigration for profit by the music industry and the Decency Initiative will continue to demand a universal standard of respect, particularly for all women and African Americans.

The August 7th national protest will mobilize dozens of women and men in 20 cities for a call to action. There will be a press conference and protest in each city located strategically outside of a major music distributor. The strategic locations will send a strong signal to the music industry that the people will no longer stand by idly while public airwaves are used to promote disrespect.

The protests will be multi-cultural and include all age groups. The women and men will come from all facets of the community including leaders and students. All people must now stand united in defense of decency and the August 7th gathering is just the beginning of a national movement to achieve this end.

Background on the Decency Initiative:

In Reverend Al Sharpton’s 2003 book “Al on America” he dedicated a whole chapter to Hip-Hop, condemning Hip-Hop artists for using those exact three words. He convened the first Hip-Hop summit taking a very public stance that was widely covered in the media both nationally and locally. He also picketed the movie Barbershop for desecrating Rosa Parks, a position that was covered nationally. He has written numerous op-ed pieces for the New York Daily News and others about the “N” word and how Blacks must stop using it. On his syndicated radio show which is broadcast in 40 markets he has had hip hop artists on and debated them about the use of demeaning lyrics. He appeared recently on Oprah Winfrey’s show opposing the Hip-Hop artists. At our recent NAN national convention that was widely covered by all newspapers, we withdrew an award for L.A. Reid, a Black music executive because he had co-authored songs with the “Ho” word, and we had a public forum on the words with hundreds of Black kids and formed a Decency Initiative headed by Tamika Mallory to follow up with Blacks and others that use the terms “N,’ “B” and “H.” The Decency Initiative and Reverend Sharpton led a march of hundreds outside of the four major companies on May 3, calling upon on them to remove those words from their artists, most of them Black. Then Decency Initiative and Reverend Sharpton went into Detroit holding the same public forum in late May.

The Decency Initiative has marched upon Viacom, the owners of BET, and even addressed their stockholders on this issue. The Initiative also called upon comedian Michael Richards to apologize for his use of the “N” word and the Decency Initiative does limit its outrage to members of the music industry or to its impact on African-Americans. The vigil on August 7th will be an annual event sponsored by the Decency Initiative.

12:00 (Noon) EST

New York City

Virgin Music Store

Times Square

1540 Broadway

Btwn. 45th & 46th

Philadelphia, PA

F.Y.E Music Store

Broad Street and Chestnut

Philadelphia, PA

Richmond, VA

Radio One (92.1)

2809 Emerywood Pkwy

Richmond VA 23294

Stamford, CT

Mill River Park

Washington Boulevard & Broad Street

Stamford, CT

Augusta, GA

Municipal Building

530 Greene Street

Augusta, GA

Atlanta, GA

WHAT, Hot 107.9

101 Marietta Street

Atlanta, GA 30303

Miami, FL

F.Y.E Music

501 Collins Ave

Miami Beach, FL

Chicago, IL

Clear Channel Illinois Center

233 North Michigan Avenue

Chicago, IL

Kansas City, MO

Magic 107.3

4240 Blue Ridge Boulevard

Kansas City, MO

Phoenix, AZ

Sony Corporate Tower

7700 East Camelback Road

Phoenix, AZ

Los Angeles, CA (9:00 am/12:00 Noon EST)

Los Angeles Sentinel

3800 Crenshaw Boulevard

Los Angeles, CA 90008

Bakersfield, CA

American General Media Complex

1400 Easton Drive

Bakersfield, CA 93309

Montgomery, AL

97.9 Radio Station

4101 Wall Street

Montgomery, AL 36106

Detroit, MI

Motown Historical Museum

2648 West Grand Boulevard

Detroit, MI 48208

Jacksonville, FL

Gateway Shopping Center

5184 Norwood Avenue

Jacksonville, FL

St. Louis, MO

The University of Missouri – St. Louis

One University Boulevard

St. Louis, MO 63121