So Funny Man Boima commented on my last blog which prompted me to write this one...he basically said the cops (and others) think every young black man is a rapper and/or drug dealer and because of rap our young black men are being looked at in a negative manner (but read what he said because it was too funny!).

Anyway, he is right; Cops (and other people) are looking at our young men as if they are all drug dealers, thieves, and murderers. I won't put the full blame on Rap but the Rappers have contributed to this negative image our black men now have. Any young man that is wearing 'street clothes' is considered a thug- we can't even take pride in the way we look any longer because the image is connected at the hip with drug dealers and murderers- I guess that's why so many people are running towards the Kanye fashion or the TI style. We want to be respected and looked at as mature, successful people and because the saggin' pants or 'white tee's' have gotten so much negative attention over the years it is no longer 'ok' to even LOOK like a 'Rapper'.

Boima cracked me up when he said he gets picked on by the cops cause he drives a Chevy- this is too true. My fiancé and I won't even trick out our Chevy because in MN you will get harassed- they see a Chevy with some tint and a nice grill or some shoes and they just know there's a Kilo in the trunk. I can't tell you how many times I've been pulled over and once the Cop sees this 'innocent' young girl they just let me go- WTF???

Dressing a certain way and riding a certain way is something that people of the 'Hip Hop Culture' take pride in- we want to look nice, ride nice, and feel great. Does saggin pants mean you are a drug dealing murderer looking for your next drive by victim? No- but that is what they perceive. On the other hand what do you think of a man walking around in a suite? The fact is we all have our preconceived notions- which is fine- but when the people running the country has preconceived notions about an entire group of people - that is WRONG . It's WRONG to pull someone over because they are riding a Chevy, it's WRONG to be afraid of someone because he is sagging his pants, and it is WRONG to put an entire culture down because it doesn't look the way you want it to or act the way you want it to act.

Every black man does not sale drugs, every black man is not a rapper and there are many that don't even want to be a drug dealer or rapper. Rap is a lot of things but one thing it is not is THE VOICE OF HIP HOP. I'm tired of seeing these dudes running around in pink suites with polka dot bow ties hoping they will 'blend in' or look more professional. What happened to Hip Hop being a culture of expression and HONESTY? So what if (as Boima says) Rick Ross happened to drive a Chevy and he happened to sale drugs- he’s not speaking for the mass population of black men- he speaking for himself- telling his story. Once again I will say; The fact is we all have our preconceived notions- which is fine- but when the people running the country has preconceived notions about an entire group of people- that is WRONG .