1. Barely a week after rapper/producer Kanye West appeared on the cover of Time Magazine and was branded "the smartest man in hip-hop,: he did, what many believed to be the unthinkable. West used the platform of the NBC sponsored Hurricane Katrina Relief Effort Live Telethon to tell the world that racist media images were depicting Black people as "looters" and whites as "finders" of food and basic necessities.
West's comments echoed what many have been saying for days after Associated Press images circulated on the Internet with captions describing whites as "finding" and Black's as "looting".
Visibly nervous, West declared that he found it difficult to watch the news because the overwhelming majority of those facing the harshest consequences from the hurricane and its aftermath were Black. After acknowledging the noble deeds of the Red Cross, West told the world that the recently deployed National Guard and Marines were given permission to shoot and kill "us." Indeed, Louisiana Governor Kathleen Blanco told reporters that the National Guard had M16s that were "locked and loaded." "They know how to kill; they are more than willing to kill, and they will kill," the stern Governor declared.
West was no fool. He made the connection between racist media images and how those depictions would structure the relationship between the military and those labeled as "looters." For West, the dye was cast for the victims to be further victimized by the media and those purportedly there to help. Even more profoundly, West said that America was "set up to help the poor, the Black people, the less well-off, as slow as possible", linking the Bush Administration's neglect and failure to act, with larger systemic problems rooted in the American body politic.
NBC predictably distanced itself from West's remarks, stating that "the telecast was a live television event wrought with emotion," and that "…West departed from the scripted comments that were prepared for him, and his opinions in no way represent the views of the networks." The network went on to say "it would be most unfortunate if the efforts of the artists who participated tonight and the generosity of millions of Americans who are helping those in need are overshadowed by one person's opinion."
The desperation of people stranded and homeless in the Gulf region demanded such a vociferous response. Indeed West's outburst has been vindicated by the voices of those describing the situation there. One man declared that the National Guard was treating them like "rats" in the New Orleans Superdome while others sat in anguish waiting for help that was said to be on the way, but nowhere to be seen. The ghastly scenes of people lying in squalor, dying in the streets and of babies too weak to cry proved over and over again that "the Louis Vuitton Don" (one of Kanye's rap monikers) was not off the mark.
Kanye West knew that the NBC platform was a precious opportunity to cut the charade and challenge the Federal Government for its failures in New Orleans. Instinctively knowing that only a few seconds remained, a steely eyed Kanye summed up his sentiments in seven words: "Bush does not care about Black people!"
This was a bold move for an artist at the top of a career that few could ever dream of. Though celebrities have criticized the Bush Administration for the so-called "war on terror" and its dastardly militarism in the Middle East, few have been as sharp and direct as West. In standard hip-hop fashion he did not mince his words and stay married to the script. When the stakes were as high as the water was to the necks of those still trapped in their attics across New Orleans, Kanye West presented one of the greatest freestyles ever produced for a live audience. In the tradition of Louis Armstrong and all the great jazz improvisers, West stated what was immediately on his heart and for this we must applaud him.
For many, Kanye's remarks were shocking and uncalled for. Katrina was a natural disaster that the Feds had simply underestimated. In an age of political correctness West's opinions were simply wrong. After all, the Bush Administration declared that this was not a time to "play politics." But West, one of our shining geniuses from the "City of Chi" knows that politics was always in play. He, unlike the Bush Administration, also knew that time was of the essence. Desperate times call for sharp clear thinking people to step up to the plate and speak truth to power. Thank God that Time Magazine alerted those who didn't yet know it that Kanye West is one of the smartest among us.
Fanon Che Wilkins is an Assistant Professor of History and African American Studies and Research Program at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign and can be reached at
fanonche@uiuc.edu
2.Stars React To Kanye's Comments
Diddy said Kanye "spoke from his heart."
It was just a week ago that Hurricane Katrina roared through the Gulf Coast causing untold damage and misery.
The week of horror that followed has been brightened only by the overwhelming aid pouring in from people across the country.
Over the weekend, Hollywood continued to do its part to help at various telethons, including "A Concert for Hurricane Relief," benefit that aired on NBC and other networks Friday night. However, the focus took an unexpected turn thanks to the comments of Kanye West.
"I hate the way they portray us in the media," Kanye said to the cameras during the live broadcast. "If you see a black family, it says they're looting. If you see a white family, they're looking for food."
The oft-outspoken rapper then added, "George Bush doesn't care about black people."
Access Hollywood's Tim Vincent was at the benefit to get the stars' reaction to Kanye's comments.
"I think he spoke from his heart," Diddy told Tim. "He spoke what a lot of people feel."
"I think what Mr. West said provided one extreme that we should examine," Harry Connick Jr. said. "I think a lot of things were said that needed to be said and we raised the money. That's why we were here simply to raise money and we did."
NBC's live event has already raised $18 million to aid the victims of Katrina. But it was West's final comment that caused the NBC cameras to immediately cut away to a stunned and unsuspecting Chris Tucker.
Tim caught up with Chris right after his appearance.
"What did you think about what [Kanye] said on-air?" Tim asked.
" I heard a little bit of it but I think he spoke from his heart and what's he seen and what he's heard," Tucker replied.
But again, the focus of the night was to raise funds for the victims of Katrina and the stars showed up in full force ready to lend a hand. Mike Myers, Richard Gere, Hilary Swank, Diddy and Leonardo DiCaprio were all on hand and Leo even got a greeting from New York governor George Pataki.
"You're a great New Yorker," the governor told Leo.
"Thank you very much," DiCaprio humbly said.
And while all the stars were happy to help, for some it was difficult to cope with the emotions surrounding it all, including Hilary Swank who was unable to speak about it afterwards.
"Too sad, thank you for understanding," Hilary said as she passed our cameras.
Some other celebs were just plain mad, including Richard Gere.
"What do you think that there's already criticism being leveled at the government for being so lax in some people's minds in reacting to the situation?" Tim asked the actor.
"Well I think we're all feeling anger. I think we have a right to be angry," Gere explained. "At the same time, we have work to do. We can't expect that someone else is going to do it but our elected officials could have done better on this one."
Diddy seemed to agree.
"So many excuses. It ain't adding up, man. It's not making sense. If the reporters can get there and you all can get there with mics, somebody should be able to get there with food. There ain't no excuse," he said.
Harry Connick Jr. took a trip to what he called the "war zone" and saw first-hand the personal toll taken by the hurricane.
"This is the United States and I cannot believe it, it's going to take me a long time to wrap my head around the fact that these people weren't helped sooner," he explained. "It's not like they died in the hurricane. They died because they starved to death three or four days later under bright blue skies."
Actress Lindsay Lohan, who spent about two-and-a-half months in New Orleans earlier this year, had her own personal experience with a Katrina victim.
"There was this girl the other night I was at dinner and she was from New Orleans. She came here for a trip for the day. Ironically, she couldn't go back and she is here. So I kind of took her under my wing. I said 'Do you want to come and stay with us for the rest of the night?'" Lohan revealed. "It's just the scariest thought. I can't even imagine."
coming out of my 1st trimester hellhole :)
I mean I could of swore I pay taxes, vote,etc. do my people truly not count in America at this level. Every core in my body knows that had it been 30,000 white people at the superdome POOR or RICH they would have been out of there no later than Wend. morning!!
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