Tim’m West, a hip-hop artist, poet and the new director of Teach for America’s LGBTQ Initiative, presented “Empire: A Talk on the Intersectionality of Race, Sexuality and Hip-Hop” last week during his first visit to the University.
The architecture of West’s talk was supported by FOX’s knockout drama, “Empire,” which focuses on a family choosing the next executive of a hip-hop entertainment company when the current head is diagnosed with ALS. “Empire” and West’s talk soar as both recognize the negative aspects of hip-hop communities, including the treatment of sexual diversities and the idolization of capitalism — and offer solutions to those issues.
He began by examining the media’s depiction of LGBTQ characters.
“One of the challenges when you have a gay character is that for people unaware of that culture, they can tend to look at that one person as their example — their entry point — into the conversation,” West said.
West recognized the plight the LGBTQ community faces by utilizing Jamal — a gay character in “Empire” — to demonstrate how sexuality can inhibit the success of hard-working, deserving individuals in a judgmental society. He said he hopes to continue the conversation by suggesting that the misrepresentation of the LGBTQ community in the media is harmful.
“Homophobic American culture gives rise to hip-hop culture that can’t help but be homophobic,” West said.
However, he added that the way in which black communities are seen as inherently more homophobic than other communities is itself a repulsive and unsupported generalization in American society.
West stated that hip-hop defines American culture. The family in “Empire” focuses on sustaining their wealth, portraying hip-hop culture as shamelessly unapologetic and capitalistic.
West said he believes hip-hop culture it is harder for LGBTQ individuals to make it in hip hop.
“The history of hip-hop, the hyper masculinity, the aggression, the way that violence becomes normalized … it does create a space where it’s harder for [different] identities to exist in that culture,” he said.
However, West said education on these issues can solve the problem.
“I think as you start to see American culture give a lot more freedom and space for people at large, to just be who they are, the hip-hop culture also begins to reflect that,” West said.
Bringing up the social media campaign “Black Lives Matter” during the lively discussion following the talk, he accentuated the importance of social movements on bringing awareness to these issues.
West engaged the audience with contemplation of hip-hop culture and how “Empire” embodies the culture in the media in this thought-provoking talk.
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