How do we change our culture?

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I’ve already asked the moderator and Forum Admin to change the title.

I didn’t mean to cause offense, as I hope my OP indicates. What I’d like to know is why it’s such an issue here, when my whole purpose is to talk about how to make our culture reflect the reality of the Kingdom of God. On the other hand, these kinds of images and songs are insidious throughout society. If we can’t talk about them here, where can we?

As the father of a little girl, I’m terribly afraid for the world in which she’s going to grow up. Black women have it worse than do white women, but all women face the same kinds of pressures. Yet our culture continues to tolerate it!
 
fnr said:
I’ve already asked the moderator and Forum Admin to change the title.

I didn’t mean to cause offense, as I hope my OP indicates. What I’d like to know is why it’s such an issue here, when my whole purpose is to talk about how to make our culture reflect the reality of the Kingdom of God. On the other hand, these kinds of images and songs are insidious throughout society. If we can’t talk about them here, where can we?

As the father of a little girl, I’m terribly afraid for the world in which she’s going to grow up. Black women have it worse than do white women, but all women face the same kinds of pressures. Yet our culture continues to tolerate it!
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I understand that OP but perhaps you should have asked why racism and sexism in music is tolerated in this culture That would have given a much better impression than the current title.

I hope the modderator changes it quickly, as I know you did not mean to offend me or anyone else. I just posted my first gut reaction so you would see how such a title affects a woman of African descent who happens to just cast a glance at it. See what I mean?

Peace.
 
Marybeloved said:
I understand that OP but perhaps you should have asked why racism and sexism in music is tolerated in this culture That would have given a much better impression than the current title.
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I think that’s exactly the kind of question we should ask. But it’s not the only question I’m trying to ask. Racism and sexism are awful, but they’re only part of the problem. It’s African American male artists that are making this music, and it’s being played across America (and maybe the world), spreading the stereotype that women in general (and black women in particular) are some combination of materialistic, shallow, slutty, and crazy. But that message affects all women, and men, particularly kids who are just about to hit puberty, and portrays an image of what being a sexual person looks like.

I came of age listening to Public Enemy’s “Fear of a Black Planet” and “Apocalypse '91: The Enemy Strikes Black.” From those albums, I learned to think critically about sexism, advertising, stereotypes, racism, alcohol, the media, and materialism. Their strong influence on me convinces me that the music that children hear growing up shapes their views of culture. So songs like Cee Lo Green’s “Forget You” (“F**k you” on the internet and night clubs), and their historical predecessors (“Bth Betta Have My Money”; “Gold Digging Girls Drivin’ Me Crazy”, “Shake Ya Tailfeather”), leave impressions on society as a whole.

I certainly don’t blame all of this on hip-hop. The cheapening of human sexuality is a much broader issue than hip-hop. But I picked the title because in this culture, black women have been so maligned by the culture as a whole, black and white. In America, we are shown the images
I just posted my first gut reaction so you would see how such a title affects a woman of African descent who happens to just cast a glance at it. See what I mean?
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And thank you for your gut reaction. I am sorry that my title offended. May I please ask your mind’s reaction? I’m a white guy who spends too much of my alone time thinking about this stuff.
 
Armor_of_Light said:
I see another thread on the topic of colonizing other planets, etc…
I think that is the only way to fix it. Move and start over.

On a more serious note…
The statistics are apalling! There is a war on the black community, I think more evil than ever before. God help us! Please God help us!
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Well, my concern is that if we don’t fix this planet, we’ll just mess up the next one too. :eek:

Actually, yes, the black community is under tremendous stress. That means that redressing racism and the economic disparities in America (and the world), plus the cultural scars they leave, are part of building the Kingdom of God (and the culture of life it hosts).

I’m not just plugging this as an anti-racism campaign, which it is in part. It’s also a pro-life issue. African Black women in the U.S. get abortions at a much higher rate that white women and Latina women. Black women in the U.S. get about 40% of abortions, despite being around 13% of the overall population of women. In Michigan, the City of Detroit has abortion rates that are the highest in the state. Looking at the ratio abortions/(live births + abortions), for white women the ratio is about 1/7.5; for black women the ratio is about 1/3. I calculated those ratios using data from the National Center for Health Statistics’ most recent abortion surveillance report.

To me, we can’t view this tragedy as a simple issue of either (a) moral depravity or (b) economic circumstance. Many conservatives will say (a), many liberals (b).

There’s a sociologist at Harvard, William Julius Wilson, whose work I’ve found to be very useful. He’s made a career of studying urban poverty, which often times is among black people. I think his insights speak to the cultural problems that American (and perhaps global, my African friends) face.

He wrote a book in the mid-1990s, When Work Disappears. Unlike many liberal scholars, he doesn’t just say that things like out-of-wedlock marriages are a result of economic circumstances. He actually talks about how that affects culture. This, to me, is why I picked the “gold digger” title.

I’m not sure where, but he talks about the concept of the “unmarriageable man.” That is, in impoverished urban areas with high crime rates, men (usually black) are not good, stable marriage prospects. About 1/3 black men is involved in some phase of the criminal justice system (incidentally, the longer rates of incarceration for blacks vs. whites for similar crimes seems to be due to prosecutors’ decisions to charge blacks with more severe crimes, based on a study from the University of Michigan and University of British Columbia). Felony convictions are devastating for employment prospects, and hence marriage.

Put a man with long-term unemployment out as a marriage prospect, and he doesn’t look too appealing (think of the TLC song “No Scrubs” - “*Can’t get with a deadbeat ****”). The perception of men in that position is that the only thing women are looking for is money. So… the “gold digger” reputation is born. But really, it’s about women who are looking for a stable man.

Wilson writes that in poor urban communities, there has evolved over time a negative outlook on marriage. Put sex into the mix and that may explain - in part - why such a large percentage of African American babies are born out of wedlock. Because a large percentage of the urban poor are black, it’s telling to look at the rates of unintended pregnancy (from the Guttmacher Institute):


It also points to an economic motivation for abortion: women who are themselves in dicey financial shape may want to wait to have a baby until she feels able to take care of it (often on her own).

In addressing how we need to change our culture to build a Kingdom of God, we must think about how to help people out of poverty. Along the way, we may also be able to reduce abortions.
 
The stereotypes promoted by those artists are very injurious.
So yes, I do say that the problem is a cultural one.
Personally, I am sick and tired of those stereotypes.
 
A big problem in my area is single parents in very poor neighborhoods having kids they cannot afford. This was explained to me by one of the Baptist ministers who runs a soup kitchen.

Being a single parent is a win-win for the man and the woman involved and a total loss for the child. The man gets his sexual urge satisfied and the woman gets extra welfare money for having kids. Unfortunately the kids grow up with no father in their life, are taught from an early age that “cheating the system” is the only way to get ahead (because that is what their parents are doing), and that this is a normal, acceptable lifestyle. This is reinforced by what they see on TV, in music etc.

Several generations of this later and you have a mini society that is totally dependent on welfare, knows that increasing this welfare can be done through having more (irresponsible) sex, and does not see anything wrong with it because that’s the way things have always been done.

It’s a huge problem in many urban areas.
 
I understand the concern illustrated here but I think (as one suggested) that the title should be addressed on another site like yahoo. Out of all the titles, you chose this one to draw attention?? Now there are other songs out there about gold diggers but they do not specify whether they are latino, black, white, hindu, asian or jewish. Although the rapper of this song is black, he may not be specifically rapping only about ‘black’ women being gold diggers…hmmm. So we know all black women are not gold diggers and not all white women are gold diggers. Finally, this country need to be revitalized and our minds and hearts need renewing to build us up in God’s word.
 
The title’s crazy; the topic is political division.

I am a political moderate. (I get called liberal because I think national health care’s a good idea, as well as free public higher education, taxes on the rich and on the finance sector. I get called conservative because I’m concerned about marriage, abortion, immigration.)

What is needed is, hate to say this, more regulation of our electoral process.

What is also needed is for the lefty wing of the Dem party to put a hold on coming up with new, socially-divisive ideas. They are stressing American politics with the constant rushing and pushing of novel political notions.

(and in the areas the lefties have been “successful” haven’t really been very successful: look at the condition of blacks in America. We need to do better there.)
 
Captain_America said:
The title’s crazy; the topic is political division.

I am a political moderate. (I get called liberal because*** I think national health care’s a good idea, as well as free public higher education, ***taxes on the rich and on the finance sector.
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With all due respect, Captain America, I’m tired of hearing “tax the rich more” when approximately half of all Americans are on the government dole one way or another. I pay tens of thousands of dollars in annual federal, state and local taxes, yet I do not consider myself rich. I also paid full tuition for my two daughters throughout their college tenure. Everyone needs some skin in the game, except for the mentally and physically disabled. No one paid my college or law school expenses, nor did they hand me a job upon graduation. I’ve earned everything I have received over the years. Why do people in America feel they’re entitled to everything? Why give students free higher education when they can earn it like I did? You must realize that not everyone is destined for higher education. If you provide free college to some, what about those who will become truck drivers, mechanics, trash haulers, etc.? Do you give them something too? And who pays for this? The “rich”?

I mean no disrespect, Captain America. Our family has been demonized because of our income and assets, yet we give generously to Catholic Charities, two parishes, and other Catholic organizations every year. Our Catholic faith inspires us to return part of our good fortune to others, but it does not prompt us to pay it to the government. They simply reward their constituents with taxpayer money, regardless of efficiency, cost or need. I trust Catholic organizations to re-distribute donations much more than the federal government.
 
The stereotypes promoted by those artists are very injurious.
So yes, I do say that the problem is a cultural one.
Personally, I am sick and tired of those stereotypes.
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👍
 
fnr said:
No, they are not. But if you listen to popular music, much hip-hop and R&B refers to women as gold diggers, freaks, divas, babymamas, and plenty of words that aren’t fit to post here. Why?

I think we need to address these questions head-on if we’re ever going to build the Kingdom of God, which is inclusive to me of the term “culture of life.”
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I was going to make a post in this thread last week and decided not to, after having watched several episodes of the TV show “Beyond Scared Straight” I feel compelled to now.

The post I had written last week was focused on the desinigration of the family unit, namely in black culture. I have worked in a social welfare agency, corrections, military, and currently do a lot of work for my diocese and in my community. I see so many people stuggling and failing and the majority have issues related to family issues.

Lack or absense of a family structure, bad parents, etc are my key reasons why. I was disgusted watching that show and seeing the mother of a high school teenager inferring that her son’s descisions were his own and she bore no responsibility for his actions or his life in general. She simply did not seem to care whether he was an A+ role model student or was seemingly destined for 25-to-life in a federal prison. The kid never knew his father and was pretty much raised by the streets, his mother viewed him as a burden in living her life they way she wanted to live it.

I see situations like this so often with much variance mind you, but the similarities always seem to be there. Kids are not raised in a responsible manner and the cycle repeats itself 15-20 years later. They don’t respect anyone, they use others and allow themselves to be used ignorantly or knowingly/willingly. They get hurt and want to hurt others, its no wonder music blatantly degredating females is so popular among youth as they don’t know any different and/or lack the self esteem as well as respect for themselves and others to know any better.

/rant
 
Your title is extremely offensive and unnecessary. I don’t care if it is sarcastic or made in jest. Blacks and whites tend to have different cultures. I don’t think whites can ‘fix’ black culture, nor do I want them to. Black people do not the great white savior to swoop in and help us fix ourselves. :rolleyes:

The last time that happened, we were beaten into accepting Christianity and forced to conform to European traditions and customs.
 
fnr said:
I think that’s exactly the kind of question we should ask. But it’s not the only question I’m trying to ask. Racism and sexism are awful, but they’re only part of the problem. It’s African American male artists that are making this music, and it’s being played across America (and maybe the world), spreading the stereotype that women in general (and black women in particular) are some combination of materialistic, shallow, slutty, and crazy. But that message affects all women, and men, particularly kids who are just about to hit puberty, and portrays an image of what being a sexual person looks like.

I came of age listening to Public Enemy’s “Fear of a Black Planet” and “Apocalypse '91: The Enemy Strikes Black.” From those albums, I learned to think critically about sexism, advertising, stereotypes, racism, alcohol, the media, and materialism. Their strong influence on me convinces me that the music that children hear growing up shapes their views of culture. So songs like Cee Lo Green’s “Forget You” (“F**k you” on the internet and night clubs), and their historical predecessors (“Bth Betta Have My Money”; “Gold Digging Girls Drivin’ Me Crazy”, “Shake Ya Tailfeather”), leave impressions on society as a whole.

I certainly don’t blame all of this on hip-hop. The cheapening of human sexuality is a much broader issue than hip-hop. But I picked the title because in this culture, black women have been so maligned by the culture as a whole, black and white. In America, we are shown the images

And thank you for your gut reaction. I am sorry that my title offended. May I please ask your mind’s reaction? I’m a white guy who spends too much of my alone time thinking about this stuff.
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I will never defend gutter rap music, but please don’t use a small minority of ignorant rappers to paint the black community as a whole. The biggest consumers of rap music are white adolescents. Why do you assume this music references black women? Because the “artists” are black? Have you listened to rap? Black women are usually seen as unattractive and undesirable by most artists. Most of the rap artists you’re talking about put non-black women on a pedestal, and don’t really refer to black women at all. These are all lyrics by mainstream rappers.

“Beautiful black woman? I bet that b**** looks better red.”

“When he gets on he’ll leave your a** for a white girl.”

“My new young chick look exactly like Rihanna/A** like Nicki, but she yellow like Madonna.”

Take a look at current mainstream rap videos. You’ll probably barely see any black women at all. Most will be Hispanic or white.
 
First, we have to address the fact that this problem did not happen overnight. It took 40 years to get to this point. I will gladly provide a historical background, but it is primarily due to continued, repeated attacks on the family, the sanctity of marriage and personal responsibility.

Here’s a good start:

old.usccb.org/comm/renewing.shtml

Read it. Do it. And I have other sources of information I can point to for those interested.

Peace,
Ed
 
St_Francis said:
The three most important things to fix our culture: prayer, fasting, and almsgiving.

That’s true… plus education, evangelization and enlightenment.
And the education needs to include a focus on morality, ethics and virtue.

And due to the income disparity we have the opposite of what our rally cry was in the war for independence. Then, it was taxation without representation. Now, it’s representation without taxation for half of our country. It’s comparable to buying votes. Entitlements lead to dependency, dependency leads to obligation and eventually subjugation. The income disparity is a serious issue from many angles (not just whining about taxes, from either side of the median)
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