Can You Like Straight Outta Compton and Still Abhor Violence Against Women?
Earlier this week, I wrote a column about the smash hit NWA biopic Straight Outta Compton, and its omission of Dr. Dre’s assault on young journalist Denise “Sista Dee” Barnes. The main point of the column was to expose people to Dee’s story, and to try and convey just how much she meant to hip-hop fans at the time, but in setting the table for that narrow purpose, the piece provoked some interesting reactions. The success of Straight Outta Compton is a complicated story with a lot of angles, too many to fully address in a single column, or even two.
Some folks were dismayed at the focus on a negative aspect of the story, rather than on, say, the fact that theaters called in extra security when they should have been hiring extra accountants to count all that money. That’s a point I addressed in another column, but it is an angle that is worthy of attention, a neat metaphor for the unjust threat narratives that fuel the brutality that gave NWA its lift, and connect their success to today’s #BlackLivesMatter moment. Lest anyone believe that the extra security was a gangsta thing, and not a black thing, remember that they did the same thing for The Butler.
In a similar vein, some folks posited that the column was an effort to pick on black men for violence against women and/or violent, misogynistic lyrics…READ MORE
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Copyright 2015 Liberaland
By: Tommy Christopher
Tommy Christopher is The Daily Banter's White House Correspondent and Political Analyst. He's been a political reporter and liberal commentator since 2007, and has covered the White House since the beginning of the Obama administration, first for PoliticsDaily, and then for Mediaite. Christopher is a frequent guest on a variety of television, radio, and online programs, and was the villain in the documentaries The Audacity of Democracy and Hating Breitbart. He's also That Guy Who Live-Tweeted His Own Heart Attack, and the only person to have ever received public apologies from both Rush Limbaugh and Glenn Beck.
12 responses to Can You Like Straight Outta Compton and Still Abhor Violence Against Women?
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Suzanne McFly August 20th, 2015 at 10:07
Seems like someone is trying to make diamonds out of sand. I am a strong woman who grew up listening to this music, I seen the movie and it brought back memories of that time. As a history buff, I loved how it was almost like a documentary. This film is not anti-woman, it is simply a story of the rise and fall of NWA and trying to make it more than that is a desperate attempt to disparage a great story.
greenfloyd August 20th, 2015 at 23:52
What is so great about it?
Suzanne McFly August 21st, 2015 at 11:52
I feel I provided a good summation of why I believe this is a great movie, here it is again in case you missed it……. As a history buff, I loved how it was almost like a documentary. This film is not anti-woman, it is simply a story of the rise and fall of NWA.
greenfloyd August 21st, 2015 at 23:02
I think your summation is fine. I have not seen the movie, so I’ll take your word that it’s not anti-woman. However, when I looked up what ‘NWA’ actually stands for I was shocked; “Niggas With Attitude,” as it’s defined in the Urban Dictionary and Wiki.
Suzanne McFly August 22nd, 2015 at 14:27
I know what it stands for, always have. If you see the movie, you will understand why the have the attitude.
greenfloyd August 22nd, 2015 at 22:18
It was not the attitude that shocked, it was the word “Niggas,” because it seems racist, anti-black!?
Suzanne McFly August 23rd, 2015 at 10:08
NWA took the teeth out of that word by using it. I am not sure what you are asking, this is common knowledge so I don’t know why you are acting like this is a new thing.
greenfloyd August 23rd, 2015 at 22:25
I hardly think the word “niggas” (no matter how it’s spelled) still has fangs and I would never use it outside of a discussion like this. Please pardon my ignorance, NWA is “new” to me. I did not grow-up with Rap Music as you did. Frankly, I am glad I did not.
Suzanne McFly August 24th, 2015 at 10:52
You are missing out on some great music. You may want to categorize it with rump shaking or eff the police, but that is only if you are unfamiliar with the music. Most of the music is a reflection of what the artists have lived. If you listen to the words you will be able to hear about a world you are not familiar with. It is a lesson many of us should experience and we would benefit from… Olympic torch flaming, we burn so sweetThe thrill of victory, the agony of defeat
We crush slow, flaming deluxe slow
For judgment day cometh, conquer, it’s war
Allow us to escape, hell glow spinning bomb
Pocket full of shells out the sky, Golden Arms
Tunes split the shitty Mortal Kombat sound
The fateful step make, the blood stain the ground
A jungle junkie, vigilante tantrum
A death kiss, catwalk, squeeze another anthem
Hold it for ransom, tranquilized with anesthesias……This is Wu Tang and the song is Triumph. The guys in this group are lyrical geniuses because they articulate a view of the world few of us have. They describe it in such a way you can see what they are saying. You can almost feel the emotions coming through, you just have to listen and not judge.
GiveP*****achance! August 20th, 2015 at 17:02
Do I look like a mutha fuckin role model?
To a kid lookin’ up ta me
Life ain’t nothin but bitches and money.
greenfloyd August 20th, 2015 at 23:55
I do not like Rap Music and the Gangsta-culture it promotes. As far as I can tell it has no redemming value whatsoever!
maggie August 21st, 2015 at 03:14
it’s just another reason to vote for HRC for prez…reduce the misogyny in the world….HRC2016