 It is sometimes startling that certain people neither understand nor
get the functional meaning of responsibility. In an era so given to
mirror-licking narcissism, we do not understand the idea of general
good; individual freedom is mistaken for merely breaking the rules by
rebelling against some version of authority or saying simple-minded and
stupid things just because a mike is pushed in front of one's mouth.
Kanye West
is the latest hip-hop celebrity to add his foolishness to the ongoing
mix of self-celebration, fashion vulgarity at high prices, misogyny and
decadent or anti-social behavior for which hip hop is so well known.
West has long been held up as an alternative to the kind of exploiting spiritual slime with which one associates 50 Cent,
whose actual name is Curtis Jackson. When West walked past Jackson in
sales, those in the world of hip hop were ecstatic. That was supposedly
the triumph of harmless, satiric and somewhat "conscious" hip hop,
presumably meaning that West was to be congratulated for being opposed
to things such as cannibalism, incest, mass murder, pimping child
prostitutes, and hopelessly believing there are enough brains in the
noisiest part of the Republican Party to fill a pickle jar.
West is the son of Donda West, who was a proud and supportive single mother, a retired professor and chairwoman of the Chicago State University English department. Her death at 58 last November resulted in an outpouring of compassion. People magazine reported, "As CEO of West Brands LLC and co-founder of the Kanye West Foundation, she teamed with her son to develop a nonprofit that aimed to combat the dropout problem in high schools in 2005."
That compassion was good to see, even though there was some icy
whispering about the fact that Donda West died from complications
following cosmetic surgery. Basically, however, she was shown respect
and mourned for what she had done, which was to rear a son who had
gotten to the top floor of his profession without ruthlessly
celebrating the tar pits of the very streets that took so many down.
And West contributed something important to Raquel Cepeda's
potent documentary "Bling." That film demonstrates how rappers wishing
to parade their wealth through tastelessly large pieces of jewelry are
actually helping to perpetuate the business of "blood diamonds" in Africa.
Every oversized piece of "ice" or insipid "grill" of gold and diamond
teeth could be the result of a hill of hands chopped off in Sierra Leone, where few wear gold or diamonds.
In the film's prologue, West says about all of the bling, "This is
our way to make ourselves truly citizens and move up in the caste
system. It's ironic that what made black people feel so empowered was
completely demoralizing and destroying other black people."
Something like a thought. Of course, one would expect that of a son
about whom Donda West said, "Kanye likes to think as a hobby and speak
his own mind."
It would seem that West's hobbies have changed since his mother died
- because of what he said when discussing his new 52-page, 500-word
book (yes, that's all, folks!), "Thank You and You Are Welcome." The
rapper is quoted as saying, "Sometimes people write novels and they
just be so wordy and so self-absorbed. I am not a fan of books. I would
never want a book's autograph. I am a proud nonreader of books. I like
to get information from doing stuff like actually talking to people and
living real life."
There are so many black people of all ages, like the innovative surgeon Ben Carson,
who have - thanks in no small part to the power of books - come right
out of the projects, put their thumbs in the ground and turned the
world around.
Kanye West seems to be floundering in the sea of irresponsibility
that allows grown men and women to never leave the ranch of their
adolescence. Poor wealthy kid. He needs his mother now more than ever.
Donda West could perhaps help him grow up and use his celebrity to
encourage others to do just what she did. Be a responsible adult not
giving to misleading children.
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