In the days leading up to the nationwide premiere of the film, many venues across the country witnessed a heightened presence of law enforcement. Much of the paranoia stems from the dominant society’s perception that the legendary (and revolutionary) hip-hop group’s brutally honest message of Melanoid people being mistreated and killed at the hands of law enforcement would incite an emotional response from Melanoid viewers of the film, thus emboldening them to indulge in possible violent behavior.

However, no such instances occurred, once again dispelling misconstrued notions that Melanoid people behave a certain way. In the following video, CNN host Ashleigh Banfield discusses the box office hit:

Although this strikes as shocking news to the dominant society, this is the standard code of conduct that Melanoid people abide by as we attend films created by Melanoid people, which pales in comparison to the terroristic actions of murderers who are notorious for murdering innocent people in movie theaters on many occasions.

B. Clark

The comments were made on the heels of a well-received and thought-provoking performance given by the rap superstar, who performed his hit song, “Alright” at the BET Awards last week. According to Rivera, who was joined by his fellow correspondents of FOX News’s The Five in their unwarranted criticisms of Lamar’s performance, stated the following:

“This is why I say that hip-hop has done more damage to young African-Americans than racism in recent years,” he added. “This is exactly the wrong message.”

Rivera wasn’t alone in his attack. Kimberly Guilfoyle implied that Kendrick Lamar’s standing upon a police car during the performance “incited violence”, and the other guests on the panel continued to chime in, providing condescending commentary throughout the video below.

 In response to the suspected white supremacist commentary of the conservative talk show participants, Kendrick Lamar gave a response. Here it is in the following video:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xPSHbBHPbSg

In his explanatory response to Rivera’s remarks, Kendrick simply illustrates how his performance at the BET Awards was actually done to shed light on the disturbing recent uptick of Melanoid victims being killed by race soldiers who act as police officers.

For years, the “blackface” acts have been used by members of the dominant society around the world as a means of either paying homage–or ridiculing–Melanoid people. In spite of the stigmatic history of “blackface”, there exists a group of people in Japan who feel that they pay tribute to the hip-hop culture of Black America by donning clothes, wearing hairstyles, and even tanning their skin as a way of mimicking the very same group of people who they see on the music videos.

This video captures the very essence of the “B-Style” culture that Japanese hipsters have embraced. “B-Style”, short for “Black lifestyle”, would be referred to as a subculture for most, but to “B-Stylers”, their lifestyle is the only way to live. Hina Hasunuma is one of the main characters of the video clip. Hasunuma, who in the video worked for a trendy Japanese retail store that sells hip-hop themed clothing, says that the stores slogan is “Black for Life”.  In the 4:10 mark of the video, Hasunuma’s mother laughs off her daughter’s choice of lifestyle, mentioning that it is a fad that she will soon grow tired of being a part of.

The “B-Style” trend of Japan is akin to a trend occurring in the United States in which members of the dominant society make money hand over fist on the backs of Melanoid talent, style, and culture. What this Japanese trend also shows us is that people outside of the Melanoid community are able to go through “slumming” phases by sampling or borrowing elements of our culture, only to return to their own cultures at any moment’s notice with their socioeconomic statuses in tact.

Despite the influx of non-Melanoid people copying (and in many cases infiltrating with no intent of empowering the culture in which they siphon from) our style and culture, we are left vulnerable to such treatment because our communities lack an enforced code that heavily reprimands these people for doing so. If Melanoid people in the U.S. were to start mimicking the styles, cultures, and mannerisms of certain people outside of their communities for financial gain, chances are likely that we would be checked on what they believe to be an infringement upon their culture on our behalf. Anyone is entitled to copy  the cultures of other groups of people, but their intentions must be questioned. Is imitation the greatest form of flattery, or in the case of the “B-Stylers”, is it the greatest form of mockery?

by B. Clark