Are They Cross Dressing in Hip Hop?

What’s Behind the New Hip Hop Fashions?

Why is it that celebrities have the strongest impact to persuade people into cultural shifts?  Why?  It's the perception that they appear to be everywhere. Almost omnipotent! For instance they can be seen on television, posting on the internet, spectating court side  at various sports games, access to The White House as friends to the President, or testifying before Congress to lobby endless causes and charities, some adopt poor African babies, others simply collect adoptive children from around the world, not to mention the business of entertaining around the world, while working globally,  and locally. Even after death they still influence people.  Check out MJ, Elvis, Whitney, Jimmy Hendrix, John Lennon, and James Brown to name a few of the late greats who rocked the world and influenced fashion beyond their years. 

However; what is the link from fashion to the hood?  Fashion companies understand marketing and product placement very well. By doing so they market clothing to celebrities in hopes that the general public will copy the trend, which they normally do,  and they do it  in record numbers. These trending looks are quickly adopted by fans who filter it down to the populace, promoted through mass media and eventually into your very own closet. ​

Why is it that celebrities have the strongest impact to persuade people into cultural shifts?  Why?  It's the perception that they appear to be everywhere. Almost omnipotent! For instance they can be seen on television, posting on the internet, spectating court side  at various sports games, access to The White House as friends to the President, or testifying before Congress to lobby endless causes and charities, some adopt poor African babies, others simply collect adoptive children from around the world, not to mention the business of entertaining around the world, while working globally,  and locally. Even after death they still influence people.  Check out MJ, Elvis, Whitney, Jimmy Hendrix, John Lennon, and James Brown to name a few of the late greats who rocked the world and influenced fashion beyond their years. 

However; what is the link from fashion to the hood?  Fashion companies understand marketing and product placement very well. By doing so they market clothing to celebrities in hopes that the general public will copy the trend, which they normally do,  and they do it  in record numbers. These trending looks are quickly adopted by fans who filter it down to the populace, promoted through mass media and eventually into your very own closet. 

Some may argue that fashion influences culture or others contend that culture may  influence fashion.  In the fashion world we can see many blatant  trends that developed from customs or costumes developed in faraway lands making it onto the streets of Europe, Asia  and the America's .  We can also see when the fashion world pushes social activism through clothing as well it changes the things fast. It doesn't take long to recount the PETA skin campaigns to not wear fur, or AIDS AFRICA t-shirts of the 80’s, or Apartheid, Darfur, Tibet, and most recently the Trayvon Martin solidarity around the wearing of Hoodies and such. Within each fashion campaign the general public became much more aware, socially conscious and accepting of the political agenda behind the Fashion statement.

Do You Like What You're Becoming?

What About the Effects on Children

 What are the effects that popular icons leave with our children? We know children follow what the see, hear, and experience. With all this confusion surrounding people's individual right to establish their own gender identity roles recently in our society, life could be pretty confusing for a kid these days. With gender roles between men and women are  becoming interchangeable it can get get confusing for an adult. We are moving toward a culture where people are no longer going to be identified by gender; yet we are still divided on race. 

Now some will argue that fashion is just clothing. No! I beg to differ, fashion is a statement of your identity. Much like a painters begins with a blank canvas and creates what he may think is a masterpiece and someone else may call garbage. Such is your body that is a blank canvas that you clothe.  When millions of people chose to wear Hoodies in support of Trayvon Martin it had a cultural, political and social purpose. When women decided to burn their bras in protest it had a cultural, political, and social purpose.  Religions of the world also know the impact that fashion can have on the population. Muslims around the world and many Christian groups, as well as Hindu and Buddhist choose not to wear what is very revealing articles of clothing for women. Personal fashion serves a purpose and sends a message about who you are socially and morally. When men let their pants sag, to expose their buttocks and private areas that also serves a purpose.  Now we are in the era that men are beginning to wear dresses and carry designer hand bags, and some women choose to look like thugs and men as a way to assert their independence and identify they are equal to men.  More or less in this society we must ask ourselves; how will the children become? Who are   their role-models and what type society will we have?

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Bags for Men? For Real Though?

The historic nature of the Black male's strengths, wisdom and manhood in since the conquests of Africa has always been reflective as an aggressive, ignorant, and savage. To those that wish to rule, or oppress Africans certain mental mechanisms were put into place to allow a more submissive characteristic to arrive in the present day.  Now we see a trend developing in the opposite.  Now there seems to be infighting for various submissive roles in western culture and society as a whole. 


The Black women advances to her new role in the Black Family as the new  breadwinner that is independent of her man. She is more likely now the Head of the Household and more likely a  single parent to dependent children lacking a father figure role model, than she was a generation ago. As the Black men remain overly incarcerated, under-educated, and impoverished by lack of opportunity in their respective communities. These men face many challenges and stigmas as well as  stereotypes in the media and society. One of the most popular and productive of all is the the black male as  a criminal, drug dealer, pimp  and dead-beat parent. With these few titles to represent the masses, it leaves a Black man with little to no hope in the future of America. If you are labeled a criminal you cannot find virtually any income that can support a family, let alone live in a good part of town. If you are a drug dealer you are no longer qualified to attend college with a loan. If your labeled a pimp, you have no respect for your women or daughters of the community. If you are labeled a deadbeat, you are looked upon as bum and betrayer to your family,  and thus your most sacred bond is destroyed for generations to come. 


So with all these negatives where are the positives for the community? There are some positive ways out that have become  over-saturated. These sparsely occur but  are peddled  and believed to be a legitimate career choice to the community via the media. They include alternative ways out of the streets would be to become  an entertainer, athlete, or play the lotto. 


When Blacks realize that their lives have been planned and manipulated to remain poor, irresponsible, and ultimately to  become the useless deadbeat parent on child support, or the career criminal they become depressed and demoralized. Feeling hopeless the communities reflect this devastation. Leaving a leadership vacuum within the family and community. Those lucky few that are in a position to lead or  become celebrity role models, are now being encouraged to promote cultural shifts in a once very religious and disciplined people to adopt more of the socially influenced alternative lifestyles. These alternate gender role reversals help to quell the fear of the aggressive Black Male Arch type. 


Black men can now be seen not as the fearless revolutionary Nat Tuner, or the courageous journalist and political prisoner Mumia Abu Jamal, or the  disciplined Muslim brother Malcolm X or  his  Christian counterpart Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. These men were in suits in the Civil Rights! Where are the Black Leaders now? Where are the Black men in suites now? We are now in an era where are humiliated and ridiculed by the media and now we  portray ourselves as as submissive or feminine by  wearing ,dresses and carrying expensive bags. Does this means society feels safer with Black men in dresses, than a hoody or even a suite?


Broadcasting to the poor with Black male celebrities in women's clothing and carrying designer handbags is Equating wealth in the Black community as a feminine trait not worthy of masculine men. If you want to be accepted you must join the club or you cant sit with us seems to be the high-school lunchroom scenario all over again for an entire  community trapped in their second childhood.  


The  symbol of the Black male as the Head of his Family and Community as an authority figure, educated, brave and wise is no longer displayed in our modern culture. So much so that  the black  woman is increasingly looking toward the same gender to replace the black male in family and society. Modern culture and the Equality Movement speak to it that the  a female lesbian partner is as an equal substitute for the Black Male in the family. Now and  for future generations to come? 


If you're OK with the trends, stick to it. If not be your children’s number one role-model. There aren't many left in the African American community that are visible.  Culture today influences our fashion, media, and day-to-day life. That’s not changing ever. You don’t have to be Homophobic to dislike this trend or very smart to understand what’s happening. 


All you have to do is open your eyes to what most people wish to ignore. The world is changing, and changing fast! Understand what and who is behind your daily influences, books, clothing, internet, TV, movies and music.  Gain the insight to make decisions without putting your family and culture in jeopardy just because someone or company or government is paying for product placement, in your mind as well as  in your families and communities.