Organize or Die: The Hip-Hop Community and the 2008 Election
A few weeks ago, I sat on a panel dealing with the hip hop community and the 2008 presidential election. I sat next to artists, grassroots organizers and even a representative from the College Republicans advocating for McCain, and we had a vigorous discussion about politics, activism and the nature of change. Noticeably absent: the campus’ pro-Obama group.
Sure, there may have been a scheduling conflict or something of that nature, but the fact that a pro-Obama organization on a progressive college campus with thousands of supporters couldn’t send one representative to a panel discussion with active, engaged young people speaks volumes about the relationship of the Democratic party to the hip hop community.
They take us for granted. The Democrats, at least when it comes to presidential races, are simply assuming that we will support them and not bothering to really address the issues that we, as young people, as people of color, as people from working-class backgrounds, or as progressives, really care about.
And when Democrats do reach out to the hip hop community, it’s often superficial. Indeed, it’s easier to forge a relationship with an abstract entity or concept than actually support or advocate for policies that affect young people, people of color and working class people. It’s easier to stage a photoshoot with Puffy than make commitments to, say, investigating police brutality in inner-city neighborhoods.
Of course, we play right into this all too often. How many songs, verses or punchlines name-drop Obama and get a huge crowd response? How many hip hop celebrities have come together to praise the Democratic candidate and talk about how important it is to vote? How many rappers and fans rock Obama shirts while not really taking part in any kind of real activism?
Don’t get me wrong—it’s good to see celebrities talking about voting, and it’s good to see people taking an interest in politics, even if it’s somewhat shallow. There’s nothing wrong with that. The problem, however, is that we’ve set up the act of voting as an end in and of itself, and not a means to an end. If we want sustainable, institutional change, it’s going to take a lot more work than pushing a button once every couple of years.
And I’ll be honest—despite my distaste for the Democratic party, I’m going to vote for Obama and I think you should too (for a full explanation why, read my blog here). The more important thing, however, is to have a real understanding of what that vote means: it’s not the most effective way to create change—just the easiest. It’s not going to save our public schools, or smash the prison-industrial complex, or make college more affordable, or discontinue redlining practices, or change the unjust drug laws, or stop gentrification, or end military recruitment at high schools.
It’s just going to make it a little bit easier for us to do all that stuff—as activists, as organizers and as advocates.
No matter who wins this presidential election, we need to be ready to pressure them. We need to think beyond voting. Whether we’re starting community organizations, organizing rallies and teach-ins, running for local offices ourselves, sitting in on city council meetings, raising money for activist organizations, writing articles and blogging, lobbying elected leaders, taking part in door-to-door canvassing campaigns or whatever, we need to be active, pushing Democrats and Republicans alike to truly advocate for us.
Much has been written and said about the hip hop community’s potential as a real force for progressive change. Unfortunately, most of that potential remains untapped. Yeah we throw big events here and there and rap about how Bush is the devil, but when it comes to activism, our networks and talents and energy could go a lot further.
So go out and vote, tell all your friends to vote and have a good time. But also understand that once November 5 rolls around, our work isn’t done. This is a time of crisis for this country, and it’s up to us, with or without Barack Obama in the Oval Office, to do something about it.
(This editorial originally was originally published by Mill City Review and is being republished with permission.)
Great article! Thanks so much for the interesting information. Too Shy to Stop writer Fawn Clark just did a piece on hip-hop playwright Idris Goodwin’s visit to the University of Illinois. You can read the article here.
lET EVERYBODY kNOW!
The line “They take us for granted” can be related to a variety of other demographics – the “youth vote” being one in particular that I’m barely holding on to.
It’s almost assumed in many circles that if you’re “young” you’ll be voting for Obama. I caught myself checking out a friend’s Facebook profile the other day and it had a comment supporting McCain – had to do a double take because I had been making that very assumption despite living with four Republicans in college.
Point is, the country isn’t loaded with College Republicans, it’s loaded with a lot of young voters who will vote McCain because they believe in the party (and College Republicans). That’s something that can be lost in the shuffle of the “Hope” campaign – not everyone is hopeful for Obama to become President – and it’s still worth rallying for because there are some voters who honestly haven’t made up their mind on the issue.
(That being said, vote Obama!)
Kyle, I read your article as well as your Obama piece on your blog, and while I agree with you on some of it, I disagree on a few main points as well. I am outlining my own position here:
1. The general public is uninformed
2. The general public (in tandem with a sensationalist press who pander to the public’s want for easily digestible news-bites) shape the platforms of political parties rather than political philosophy. Candidates run on what the public cares about, and the public generally cares about things that aren’t really important (candidate’s religion, for instance).
3. Political parties field candidates based on what they think will get them elected, not what the candidate’s actual beliefs are. In our political system this is a necessary evil since no politician’s political beliefs can match that of the majority of America, and people generally only want candidates that care about the issues that are important to them, rather than what might be good for the country. If people as a whole were capable of making more informed, nuanced political decisions, based on what they think will be best for the future of the country, rather than a handful of political sound bites that sound good to them, then maybe political parties could actually field candidates that didn’t have to pander to a generalized one-size-fits-all political philosophy. Since to affect any political change candidates generally need to get elected, they have to put aside what they may want to do and try and create a simplistic picture of themselves that people will vote for.
4. In this climate, Democratic candidates could reach out more to individual rappers whose ideologies fall along the same lines as their own. Such a move would be the kind of risk that could easily lead to them not being elected. Reaching out to the Hip Hop community runs the risk of A. Contributing to the press’s “Hollywood-ization†of the Democratic Party and B. Alienating white suburban voters who still lock all their doors when driving down Franklin Ave. and who are terrified of Rap – both fallacies which are perpetuated by the public and press. I can hardly blame a candidate for not reaching out when the misinformed public would so thoroughly denounce him/her for doing so.
5. Considering these factors I don’t blame our political parties for embracing certain issue and ignoring others. They are trying to do what will get them elected. As I said before, trying to do otherwise will make them lose every time. Often the politicians who are able to pull off the best impersonation of the everything-to-everyone candidate wins, and often that is not necessarily the best suited candidate for the job. I instead blame the public for creating this climate of misplaced values to begin with. If we want to really change anything, people have to start engaging in the political process more. Nothing else will make political parties field candidates who are able to run on platforms that will actually affect change in America. Little parties like the Independents and Greens can continue to field candidates, but until the public is better informed about the issues that actually matter in America, they will never succeed. Hip Hop can be a HUGE part of this process – educating the public to be more aware from the grassroots up. Trying to use it to change things from the top down I think will get nowhere. Therefore, I don’t believe that in this political climate Hip Hop should be trying to lobby political parties to pay attention to them. Instead, work on educating the general populace to A. be more informed and B. that Hip Hop can be a positive tool for change.
6. The government is supposed to be made up of our representatives who represent our values. Lot’s of people think that the current government doesn’t represent the majority of Americans. I disagree. As a public, the majority of us made ill-informed decisions when electing our representatives. Our government is a result of those poor decisions: after all, an inept government is the most accurate representation of a public who doesn’t consider aptitude as an important factor when voting. It isn’t the government’s fault – any more than it would be the fault of a monkey if we put it behind the wheel of a car and it failed our expectations to drive. We keep putting monkeys behind the wheel and are then surprised when the engine of government fails to get us anywhere. We have the power to change our representation but instead continue to make the same poor decisions.
7. This being said, in Obama I think we actually have a bit of a “stealth candidate,†a unique candidate who is not only appealing to the general public, but is also extremely intelligent and cut his teeth as a community organizer doing work that actually made a concrete difference to people. So what if Obama’s official platform isn’t addressing some of the issues you care about – he is doing what he can to be elected. To be elected he needs the support of the DNC and the public, all of whom have their own agendas. I am voting for the man, not the party. I believe that if he is elected his presidency will be better overall for everyone, based on what I have researched about his history, and what I believe about his values and judgment.
“Little parties like the Independents and Greens can continue to field candidates, but until the public is better informed about the issues that actually matter in America, they will never succeed.”
“I am voting for the man, not the party.”
For the last election I looked at party politics and I looked at individuals. A girl who I was pretty interested in at the time was working for John Kerry’s campaign, so I was always “in on” the latest and greatest. I had long since given up on Bush, but wanted something different. I didn’t see that in Kerry-different is the wrong word, positive might be more fitting. I couldn’t see myself “voting for the man” or the party.
And I know that I wasn’t alone, but a lot of people then went on to not vote whatsoever or vote for Kerry/Bush anyways. I voted Green/Nader because I knew that it would have been entirely shitty of me to say “Candidate A sucks, Candidate B sucks, and I hate the two party system” without doing something to give my words emphasis. So for better, or worse, I voted Nader.
This time around Jon, I’m like you – I still think the two party system is a joke, but I’m not interested in that right now – I’m interested in the individual at the head of the party.
“An inept government is the most accurate representation of a public who doesn’t consider aptitude as an important factor when voting.” – As we’re all brilliant, gorgeous MFers who tend to hang out with other brilliant gorgeous MFers it’s very easy to forget that we’re not the majority.
Jon Behm – bringing the truth.
Also, thought this was interesting,
“It ain’t over, until it’s over. There is still so much work to be done. The thrill of victory is just 1 week away. We hear it in the streets, we feel it in our hearts and it’s burning in our souls. Together we have successfully registered the most young voters in the history of the modern political process. We called a State Of Emergency on October 3rd at 6:00AM and our culture stood up and recognized the importance of registering millions of voters. From 1st time voters who have just come of age to vote, to those who are participating for the 1st time in the voting process. Your commitment to Change will continue to ring across our America, because we all are in the Right State Of Mind
Where it stands today, we are on the verge of making history, the kind of history that will be apart of our cultures legacy. The kind of history that bridges the gap between race, religion and culture, the kind of history that will ignite a light that shines bright from generation to generation, screaming that our voice does matter and our vote does count. The kind of history that will enable the next generation of leaders to encourage vision, not division, to encourage hope, not hopelessness, to encourage the power of the people, not the power politics of the few.
With only 7 days left before we vote for change, let’s hold ourselves accountable and responsible. No more excuses, no more mistakes and no more time to waste. If you have the opportunity to vote early in your state then vote today. If you are voting on November 4th, make preparation today. Bring your family and friends and plan for the party at the poles. Make November 4th the day we celebrate change – The day we celebrate freedom of choice. The day we celebrate power of all people. Lets all come together on November 4th, because it’s a family reunion. It’s our time and we are all in the Right State Of Mind.
We have 7 days to Vote for Change. 7 days to Vote to Make History. We can not slow down. We can not let up. We must push through to history until the final vote is cast and the last ballot is counted. We can, we must, and we will Make It Happen. Vote Obama/Biden on November 4th.
God Bless,
Diddy
Jay-Z
Mary J. Blige
Kevin Liles”
hey jon– i don’t think i disagree with any of what you said. the thrust of what i’ve been doing for the past month, with my mixtape, my articles, my banter between songs, etc. isn’t so much about the candidate, as it is about us. i understand that obama isn’t perfect, and that a perfect candidate would never be able to secure a nomination.
the most important thing, however, is that people understand this, and understand that change doesn’t come from the top down, but from the bottom up, no matter who’s in office.
my next article is about activism and the hip hop community, and it’s been a long time in the making.
again, my problem isn’t with obama, it’s with that segment of the population who has put him on a pedestal as someone who’s going to “save” us. maybe that’s a straw man (i hope so), but i doubt it.
american culture is one of leaders and commoners, one of voting every couple of years and then washing your hands of democracy to let the big people sort things out. but we need to be cultivating a culture of organizing, of active democracy that takes place year-round.
but yeah, on that note, stay tuned for the next installment.
Wow. I love you. so much of what you write is dead on point for me. what you are saying about authentic meaningful community organizing is so important. How do we go about creating unity, even within our movement? How do we go about organizing in a manner effective enough to motivate and mobilize a SusTainable arts and justice movement??
I def wanna be a part of finding out. obviously you do as well….
peace and keep writing…..
stokely
-Junebug I.F.C.A