Check out The Hip Hop Democrat’s round-up of all things #BlackLivesMatter and Hip-Hop around the web. We’ve pulled our top picks of news stories across the net that continue to take an in-depth look into the movement, it’s message, and it’s action.
The Historical Relationship Between Hip Hop and Social Justice
Shanita Hubbard’s recently penned an article on Huffington Post that outlines the history of Hip-hop and social activism. She discusses how the early days of Hip-hop, which featured artists like Grandmaster Flash and the Furious Five, have continued to inspire a level of social activism among today’s stars. She illustrates why Black Lives Matter has partially revived Hip-hop’s usefulness as a social platform.
Read the full story:
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/shanita-hubbard/the-historical-impact-of-_b_8335198.html
The New Anthems of Resistance: Hip-Hop and Black Lives Matter
In a longer piece at Inthesetimes.com, history is left behind while the present context of Hip-hop and #BlackLivesMatter is explored in great detail. This article goes into detail in discussing the artists who are at the forefront of singing and playing about the movement. The piece is loaded with links and is very much worth a read.
Read the full story:
http://inthesetimes.com/article/18333/hip-hop-black-lives-matter-kendrick-lamar-janelle-monae
If You Think Rappers Are Silent About #BlackLivesMatter, Maybe You Aren’t Listening
Rob Markman asks “WTF” in another commentary on the web at MTV.com. In the article, he refutes the idea presented in The Atlantic that rappers are not expressing themselves in the #BlackLivesMatter movement. His convincing piece blows the disputed article out of the water. Markman’s write-up, as the previously mentioned articles do, mentions rappers involved in getting the message out about issues facing youth today. The article’s center theme is the Michael Brown case in Ferguson, MO. MTV could follow through on the article by playing more music…just sayin’.
Read the full story:
http://www.mtv.com/news/2033438/the-atlantic-black-lives-matter-rap-rebuttal/
Black Lives Matter: The Growth of a New Social Justice Movement
Syracuse University historian Herbert Ruffin lays out a very detailed piece detailing how we arrived at where we are through years of activism. Again, this lengthy article is full of useful links for an hour spent learning about social justice, the two parties and how entertainment has reached relevancy over the years in seeking social justice.
Read the full story:
http://www.blackpast.org/perspectives/black-lives-matter-growth-new-social-justice-movement