Beats Not Beatings

I would like to thank Alison, Joshua, Dani, Jackie, and Naviya with Peter Lang Publishing. I would like to thank the co-editors of the book series Hip Hop Studies and Activism Dr. Daniel White Hodge, Dr. Don C. Sawyer, Dr. Ahmad R. Washington, and Dr. Arash Daneschzadeh. I would also like to thank the contributors who believed in this important ground-breaking book that provides the foundation to the field of Hip Hop criminology—“Mic” Crenshaw, Chandra Ward, Maurece Graham, Daniel White Hodge, Anthony J. Nocella II, Antonio Quintana, Andrea N. Hunt, Tammy D. Rhodes, Kenneth Culton, andré douglas pond cummings, Victor Mendoza, Adam de Paor-Evans, Lenard G. Gomes, Elloit Cardozo, and Tasha Iglesias. It is also so very important to thank all the people that took the time to read and write a supportive review of my book prior to it coming out—Dr. Michael Coyle, Professor, Department of Political Science and Criminal Justice, California State University, Chico, Dr. David Nibert, Professor of Sociology, Wittenberg University, Dr. David Stovall, Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago, Dr. Lea Lani Kinikini, Director, Institute for Research & Engaged Scholarship, University of Hawaii, and Dr. Mechthild Nagel, Professor of Philosophy and Africana Studies, SUNY Cortland. I would also like to that the many organizations and institutions that support me—Department of Criminal Justice, Salt Lake Community College, Academy for Peace Education, Institute for Critical Animal Studies, Poetry Behind the Walls, Save the Kids, Wisdom Behind the Walls, Utah Reintegration Program, Utah Tech Higher Education for Incarcerated Youth, Salt Lake Community College’s Prison Education Program, Peace Studies Journal, Transformative Justice Journal, Lowrider Studies Journal, Green Theory and Praxis Journal, Journal for Critical Animal Studies, Dream Center Salt Lake Community College, Dream Keeperz, Critical Animal Studies Society, Critical Animal Studies Academy, International Hip Hop Studies Association, International Hip Hop Studies Conference, Waterside Village, Utah Criminology Student Association, Syracuse Quaker Meeting, Utah Vegan Runners (York, Chris, Chris, Kate, Elke, Valerie) Salt Lake Community College Vegan Collective (Peter, Brandon, Alisa, Elisa, Mike and Caleb), Utah Alternatives to Violence Project, and Salt Lake Prison Letter Writing. I would like to thank my friends and family, MOM and DAD, Emma and Lucy, Ron, Ronnie, Lisa, Angelina, Joe, Camille, Connor, Logan, Chris, Kim, Kris, Nicky, Journey, Peggy, Bobby, Steve, Dennis, Dave, Rick, Beth, Dwight, Delano, Manny, Christine Camille, Brian Roberts, Jay G., Ben G., Jeremy, Emily Thompson, Gina Alfred, David Robles, Matt Wallace, Matt Holman, Chris Bradbury, David Bokovoy, Caleb Prusso, Whitney Harris, Roderic Land, Ashley Cox, Ashley Givens, Rita Branch-Davis, Mojdeh Kati Lewis, Adam Dastrup, Amy Woods, Cassandra Drollinger, Alexis Maurice, Antonette Gray, James Walton, William A. Calvo-Quiros, Liz Ramos, Brenda Santoya, Cha McNeil, Brenda Santoyo, Idolina Quijada, Julia Ellis, Chris Bertram, Brett Terpstra, Henry Milian, Stephanie Hoffman, Gavin Harper, Peter Moosman, Mojdeh Sakaki, Kamal Brewar, Cecile Delozier, Matt Sparks, Lauralea Edwards, Amber E. George, Nathan Reese Graham-Bey, Xris Macias, Antonio Quintana, Alisha Page, Lucas Dietsche, Alisa Garcia, Elisa Stone, Gary Cox, Jordan Halliday, Jay and Nick in Houston, Chelsie Joy Acosta, Marisol Burgueno, Fausto Mejia, Danielle Burnette, Cianna, Ellie, Gabriel Manzanares, Daphne Jackson, Priya Parmar, Reies Romero, Moneka Stevens, David Bokovoy, David Stovall, Alexandra Navarro, Amanda Williams, Aragorn Eloff, Carlos García, Jason Del Gandio, Carolyn Drew, Laura Schleifer, Les Mitchell, Mätita Nupral, Nathan Poirier, Peter McLaren, Sarah Tomasello Case, Richard White, Sarat Colling and Telis Gkiolmas.

In criticizing Hip Hop, we critique dominant culture. We hear a lot of talk about what is toxic in Hip Hop culture, the violence, misogyny, materialism. The settler colonial empire of the US has a violent and dynamic history that gave birth to the contradictions and conditions that shaped the circumstances, human experiences and environments from which Hip Hop manifested.

It’s been said many ways, but Hip Hop as a subculture, is just a reflection of the larger society and its values. This form of modern cultural expression originated from ancient peoples experiencing and surviving colonialism and genocide in the so-called New World.

In its essence, Hip Hop is the concentrated, rendered, crystallized carbon building blocks of dominant western culture, forced through the prism of indigeneity of stolen, displaced Africans, colonized Native Americans and the creole derived from interfacing with European colonial settlers.

Internalizing race as a valid construct that separates people by ethnic, geographic, national, cultural, religious and skin color categories, we are giving dominant capitalist, heteronormative patriarchy power over our destiny and potential as human beings.

Interpreting race in our own self determined way, seeking liberation from oppressive dogma and deadly force gives us spiritual fortitude, guidance and orientation to something greater than what is imposed on us.

There is one human race, and we share the planet with other species. I recently read an adage that said, if humans were to disappear, other species would thrive, and, as a result of human civilization, all species may perish. Race being a dominant construct in the self-determined and collective identity of Hip Hop, is inextricably linked to sex, gender, sexuality, class and other demographic markers. If we criminalize the culture and people of Hip Hop and from whom Hip Hop emanates, we criminalize humanity. One thing I’ve come to value as a consistent element of Hip Hop in its purest form is that the authentic self will be held to account.

When the Hollywood paparazzi driven media hype that floods tabloids and social media platforms, and the major label, corporate financing of records and brands that artists represent is out of the picture, we are left with authenticity. There is substance before there is hype and we’ve grown comfortable with mistaking hype for substance. Let us remember that Hip Hop exists whether or not it is trending and that most participants in this culture are not rich and famous, they are contributing and bringing value to the culture because they love it and it is empowering. The commercial branding of lifestyle and aesthetic says through lyrics and imagery, that success is not just wealth, but opulence secured by deadly violence and willingness to do whatever it takes, whether selling dope, pimping, robbing or stealing to get it. This is an old trope that appeals to the ethos of the American Dream and rags to riches. To prove that we got everything from the mud at the expense of those who refused to support our grind, that paints a heroic effort that once realized is divine in its legitimacy.