In the first chapter, Tricia Rose
outlines the argument that hip hop causes violence. This is, of course, nonsense. People have brains, and usually are smart
enough to use them. Just because someone
says they shot someone else, that doesn’t mean you should do that too. Rose opens the chapter with a quote from Bill
O’Reilly that basically outlines why so many people dislike him and don’t
respect his opinions. He takes an
extremely conservative look at hip hop, and denounces it as something that has
horrible influences on young people.
While certain parts of hip hop may not be the best influence, there are
many other types of media that advocate violence just as much. Ever heard of movies, video games, tv shows,
books, or pretty much any form of entertainment we have today? Even childrens cartoons like Tom & Jerry
are based on a story where one is trying to kill the other. For fun, kids pretend to shoot guns and have
swordfights with other kids. This
includes kids of all ethnicities and cultures.
It’s not directly because of hip hop.
People have been violent since we became a species. Our ancestors hunted animals for food and we’ve
had wars with each other since the beginning of time. Violence is a part of everyday life; it is
completely and utterly inescapable. Therefore,
there is no way that hip hop can cause violence. Unless we no longer believe people are
responsible for their own actions, that is.
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