Jack the Rapper: Part One of a Series on Patriarchy and Hip-hop

Inconveniently enough, there is no one person we can isolate from society and hold up as the architect of patriarchy. Every individual, from birth onward, enter into relations which are patriarchal, whether we are on the dominating or the subordinate side of the coin. Oftentimes we say that people simply perpetuate sexism, whether they are the cause of it or not. This is partially true. Yet sexism is perpetuated daily, whether we actively participate or not.

Who takes the blame for this social construct? Young, black, male, rappers, of course. It is true. Black men in general have been the scapegoats whom society pushes off its ugliest of ills: violence, poverty, crime, etc.; all have found black men at the center of these social phenomenon. And because hip-hop has always been the creative medium for many young, black men, it takes on a more acute guilt.

Read the rest (including a comparison between Lil Jon and Common) on Kansas City Infozine!