How it represents a type of social consciousness, How the words have an impact on a minority community, Movement towards justice and education, themes/ideas
New Slaves - Kanye West
Kanye is talking about how racism had led from slavery to racial profiling against blacks. It used to be that slavery was an issue in the black population, but now poor African Americans are watched, followed, and told not to touch anything in stores and rich African Americans are thought of wanting flashy, expensive items. The lyrics could help a minority community realize how they are now seen and profiled and could make a move towards stopping racial profiling.
99 Problems - Jay-Z
Jay-Z raps about an experience he had where he was pulled over by a cop claiming he had been speeding, who searches Jay-Z and his car. The song is about how african americans are profiled as criminals and someone like the cop thinks he's doing something illegal because he's black. The lyrics could show people how minorities are seen in the eyes of the law and how justice can be unfair.
Black Rage - Lauryn Hill
Lauryn Hill sings about the experiences that black people over the world have experienced or are currently experiencing, including oppression, violence, and dehumanization. The song could open up awareness of how blacks are mistreated and gain support for justice.
Hell - Talib Kweli
In his poem, Kweli talks about how religion divides people. This could show people how religion has taught us that some religions are good while other religions are bad, or show just the negative sides of religions (such as a few extremist Islamic terrorists versus millions of good, law-following Muslims).
True Blues - The Last Poets
In "True Blues," the speaker speaks about how the blues gave him hope when hell was going on around him being brought from Africa to a slave plantation. The poem could raise awareness of a slave's experience.
Mathematics - Mos Def
The song is about oppression in underprivileged city neighborhoods, especially how poverty and bad education breeds crime and more people being thrown in the jail system. The song points out how different minorities in different areas face the same struggles all based on their location, race, and socioeconomic status.
I Can - Nas
The song is about how young kids, especially in the ghetto, are growing up older than they really are and getting involved with drugs, gangs, etc. Nas pleads for underprivileged kids to work hard so they can break the pattern of kids ending up in the street in the ghetto.
I think your post on Kanye's "New Slaves" was really on point and presented the topic in a different way. It is clear what the song is about, but I think what you got from it, regarding racial profiling was really insightful. I agree that his lyrics could help a movement toward stopping any kind of racial profiling all together.
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