The Urban Myth
Has thug life worn out its welcome?
by Steve McFarland

I'm not buying it anymore!  I just want that to be known up front for anyone out there listening.  Despite the marketing onslaught that would have me believe otherwise, I have seen right through it all.  I am here to uncover a real urban legend and expose it for the lie that it is.

As I scan the music channels of my television, I can't help but laugh at the number of so-called street tough, thuggish black kids that dominate the music video industry, all trying to out-thug one another.  Music videos have paraded this image before us for so long, one has a hard time distinguishing one punk from another.  It is all the same image, though thug #62 is wearing a Sonics warm-up while thug #97 has decided on vintage Black Sox cap.  I feel as if I'm at a 1950's wrestling match where one wrestler dresses as the bad guy for a match and then changes for the role as a good guy later on.  These guys have turned into a boring, predictable lot that no longer shock, scare, worry or even tempt me to want to watch longer than the clicker on my remote will move to the next channel.  The crotch grabbing, finger pointing, foul mouthed, over-sexed, black anger style has worn out its welcome.  We have reached the stage of not taking any of this seriously anymore, which is the last thing music execs want to hear.

The truth is I know where many of these kids come from and it is not as bad as they would have the public believe.  Not that I am signing up tomorrow for public housing, but the slums of America are slowly disappearing from the landscape as we once knew them.  Some of the nicest condos and apartments I have ever been in are in the public housing areas of my city.  They are safe, well furnished and have been improved to the point that many residents are content to live there the rest of their lives - which is a whole other problem.  

Although the epidemic of single mothers raising their children continues to plague the black community around the U.S., quality of life has improved because of equal opportunity. There are fewer and fewer excuses for young black students to not be successful due to (arguably) more opportunities for success than the average white student. A black friend of mine and I often discuss the advantages our black students have and how the possibilities for them are endless- if they would embrace them.  

Let me be clear. I want the black student to succeed and I am doing all I can to make that happen.  Although poverty's stranglehold is difficult to break, by perpetuating the urban image of the angry, street tough black kid, there almost seems to be an embracing, not an abhorring, of poverty.

As I study the students in the school where I work, I have noticed numerous white students who have gone beyond embracing the rap fashion and lifestyle.  Whereas, a few years ago you could easily detect that image among many middle class white students, now there is evidence of that same urban image being lampooned and not taken seriously.
Recently I saw a rap version of Shakespeare performed by our high school drama students. It had everyone laughing at its ridiculousness.  It seems that we are on the way to a situation where the only persons taking the myth seriously anymore are the rap stars themselves.

More and more I am becoming convinced that the angry, street tough black persona has become a market driven lie.  I have been in the homes of many of our students, both black and white, and there seems to be equal opportunity for both in terms of success, failure, poverty and wealth.  It is rare, however, to find students in abject poverty - unable to meet basic needs.  Not that such poverty doesn't exist - it is just rare; an exception to the normal. 

It borders on the absurd to see entertainers like Justin Timberlake personify themselves as street toughs.  Many of these pop icons trying to imitate the Dead End Kids are simply spoiled, pampered brats who can actually afford to flaunt the image for their own purposes. The irony is that my children - if they ever asked to wear the latest music driven fashion - would be disappointed simply because I cannot afford to dress them like poor street thugs. I suppose I'm too poor to dress my kids like they are poor.  

I feel the need to apologize to the heroes of the civil rights struggle who really did have legitimate reasons to be angry. There have been real hardships that American blacks have endured.  Many pockets of America still hang an "unwelcome" sign on their front doors and it would be naïve of me to think otherwise.  But I have to conclude that those who experienced that struggle must be confused over why this image of black youth has been embraced for no reason other than to perpetuate the myth.  

Too often I have observed students refusing to jump into the lifeboat available to them here in America - choosing instead to drift about in a sea of misdirection.  All as a result of an image that must, for whatever reason, be kept alive. I would conclude that Madison Avenue would stand to lose a lot of money if American youth both black and white embraced the opportunities that people fought and died for in the past.

In the meantime I will wait for the next black music star to flash in the pan, screaming more foulmouthed angry spew at me, and blaming society for his misery.  Been there - seen that. Not buying it anymore.

Steve Mcfarland

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