Quote:
Originally posted by LatinaAlumna
Snoop Dogg isn't even from Compton. He's from LONG BEACH. (Just throwing in some hip-hop trivia for everyone  )
FYI...if you didn't read the very first post I made about this issue in which I mentioned that I work directly with Compton Unified School District...I know a couple HUNDRED families who are PROUD to raise their kids in Compton. I work with several EDUCATED, SKILLED, HIGHLY-PAID professionals who have chosen to purchase not one, but multiple homes in Compton. That's how far this community has come in recent years.
And you are correct: my "sphere" is absolutely enlightened because I choose to surround myself with people who are open minded and willing to learn about other people in this world without making judgements about them.
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Take this verse from a song by Compton's Most Wanted entitled "This is Compton". I'd wager that this is a pretty typical portrayal of Compton as seen in pop-culture media outlets:
"Fresh off the streets from the underground
Nick-named mc eiht, black brother gets down
Came to dazzle with the hip-hop funk
To let em know (this is compton) now what's up, punk
Westside rulin all world cause i dump
And the city that i'm from take no shit from a chump
Niggas don't care if their enemy's beefin
Pretty soon it's a homie you're grievin
You entered the criminal zone
If you're just a little punk-ass fool, you should run on home
Try to compare? get real
I'm from compton, so you should know the deal
Ballers, skeezers, no age limit matters
Loced-out muthafuckas make the one time scatter
Toe to toe, draw my mic and start dumpin
It's the down mc eiht, and fool, this is compton
(this is compton)"
As for reality.... Here are some crime rate statistics from 2002 that might be of interest
(link)
As you can see, in nearly every category Compton FAR exceeds the national average (strangely in every category except larceny/thefts). Some interesting stats off the page if you don't want to check would be murders per 100,000 people. Compton has 53.65 in 2002 (how you have .65 people murdered I have no idea
) where the national average was only 5.2. Aggravated Assaults are also popular there as there were 1239 reported per 100,000 vs. the national average of 310.1. This is based on the combined data of the FBI and US Census.
I realize those figures are a little dated. However, maybe there is some truth to the media's portrayal after all? There may be professionals and straight-A students living there. Hell, they may even make up the majority of the folks.
I through out the Snoop reference not necessarily because of his portrayal of Compton but to demonstrate how influential pop-icons can be to our culture. A few rap artists that actually do refer to Compton in their lyrics are Compton's Most Wanted, NWA, DJ Qwik, BG Knock Out & Dresta -- just a few names. NONE of their portrayals are posititve. Aditionally, some of them actually do claim to hail from Compton.
I never referred to my own perception. I was referring to a general perception. I made my "enlightened sphere" comment to illustrate that if you walk around some suburban town in L.A. and try to sell real-estate in Compton at a great price, you probably won't find too many takers. The perception out there is that it's not a safe place. The perception is shaped mostly by pop culture & reinforced by news media. Based on my quick research, I'm not sure they're completely missing the boat here.
I'm sure there are fine people out there in Compton, but you'll have to excuse me if I think I'd rather raise my family in Suburban Oklahoma.
(here are the crime stats for my home town if you're interested)