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Bridging the Gap: Hip Hop and Techno's Shared Activist Roots

A Power Point presentation I recently did at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Summer Teacher Institute. Please feel free to leave comments or feedback. I'm hardly the expert and just shared what worked well for me. I'm always looking to exchange ideas. Apologies for the cheesy title. I had writer's block and a deadline, blah, blah, blah.

Recent Additions

• Small IslandHip-hop Book Review Small Island is a complex, multi-layered book addressing a number of if issues such as race, gender, religion, and identity in general, set to the background of World War-II era England and Jamaica.
• Green Day and The Enlightment PeriodCurriculum I recently used this video in a World History class to see if students could apply themes we studied. This video deals with the idea of religion versus spirituality. While the majority of my teaching is standards based, I also like to work in these types of activities to keep things interesting and see if students are making connections.
• Tengo Casi 500 Anos: Africa’s Legacy in Mexico, Central and South AmericaHip-hop Book Review It’s probably safe to say that most people think of Africa’s legacy in the Americas as primarily restricted to the United States and Brazil. As this book shows, this is far from the case.
• How To Rent-A-NegroHip-hop Book Review This gem was passed to me by my friend Gloria while I was supposed to be relaxing down in Mobile, AL a couple of years ago. Instead of getting me to relax, it actually got my brain working harder, which was the author’s point. The basic premise of the book is that Black folks are sick and tired of White people objectifying them and taking them for granted. Since these interactions are inevitable, African Americans should be compensated for having to put up with this behavior and the book is full of faux invoices and advice for both the renters and rentees. Need an African American companion so you don’t look racist? Want to make money answering questions about poverty, gangs, and gospel music? Then this book is for you!
• TwilightHip-hop Book Review Oakland Unity High School 9th Grader reviews one of her favorite books about love in the supernatural world.
• Black History TriviaCurriculum February's already passed, but since Black history is year round you can use this any time. While it's hardly all inclusive, I did try to make it global. There's a bit of California leaning, but since that's where I teach I had to represent for the home team!
• Amidst the chaosBlog / Journal Entry For those in Oakland, we're in the midst of incredible tensions regarding the shooting of Oscar Grant, an unarmed man, lying face down, by the BART (train) police. As I write this, a series of protests are still happening, but have wound down a bit. Among some of the incidents are the smashing of several store windows and cars being lit on fire. Yet literally in the middle of anger and strife were several dozen youth participating in positive activities and building community, oblivious to the madness of the world.-Written January 7, 2008 around 10:30 PM.
• Twenty-Five Chickens and a Pig for a BrideHip-hop Book Review To merely describe Twenty-Five Chickens as a history of Filipinos in California’s Bay Areas does an incredible disservice to an extraordinary woman’s tale of tracing her families roots in the Philippines and American south, to her present-day community activism. Although Filipino Americans are the heart of the story, the diversity of the Bay comes out, with everyone from Mexican farm workers to leaders in the gay rights movement playing a role in her life.
• Their Eyes Were Watching GodHip-hop Book Review Hurston addresses common topics such as racism and sexism, but also class and skin color differences within the African American community. While in modern times these issues are more widely discussed, the original printing was in 1937, from a woman no less.
• Brenda's Got a Baby: A Look at Teenage ProstitutionCurriculum Using Tupac Shakur's "Brenda's Got a Baby" to examine the beliefs, causes, and solutions to female exploitation. I've used this video in a number of ways, in a number of setting, all with good results. This particular version appeared in The Hip Hop Education Guidebook: Volume 1 and portions of this lesson in action can be seen in the documentary Reading Between the Rhymes. On page two I include some discussion questions I've used at times. Other popular songs that addresses similar topics are Runaway Love by Ludacris and "Girlfriend Sistagirl" by Mystic.
• Hip Hop Tried 2 Kill MeHip-hop Book Review Quite frankly, I’m pretty burnt out on “hip-hop literature” and between the title, the cover art, and the description on the back, I was expecting another clichéd tale from the ‘hood. Well, some of that is here, but it’s worth peeling back the layers as Fleetwood has some important things to say in his true account of his efforts to carve out a career in the field of hip hop. Included are many first-hand experiences addressing traps to avoid and tips on being successful at the independent level.
• A Thousand Splendid SunsHip-hop Book Review If you’re familiar with Hosseini’s first book The Kite Runner, or the movie of the same name, you already know what to expect; living in Afghanistan is hard. Someone asked me what’s one thing that stood out to me about this book and I simply told her, “I’m glad I wasn’t born a female in Afghanistan.”
• Def Prof Picks: Hip Hop and EducationCurriculum San Francisco State University professor gives her recommendations for hip-hop related education resources.
• Bridging the Gap: Hip Hop and Techno's Shared Activist RootsCurriculum A Power Point presentation I recently did at the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame's Summer Teacher Institute. Please feel free to leave comments or feedback. I'm hardly the expert and just shared what worked well for me. I'm always looking to exchange ideas. Apologies for the cheesy title. I had writer's block and a deadline, blah, blah, blah.
• Conscious Women Rock The PageHip-hop Book Review While I haven’t come across many books that deal directly with hip hop and education most of the ones I’m familiar with are pretty good. Most recently, I got my hands on Conscious Women Rock the Page, a collection of lesson plans and activities for grades 6-12 exploring themes of social justice, including racism, sexism, sexual orientation, and class.
• Hip Hop and Politics For the YouthAcademic Writing Recently, The Rap Sessions Tour came to Oakland Unity High School, in Oakland, CA. The panel has appeared at universities ranging from Harvard to Stanford and we were the first high school they addressed, which was pretty cool. The topic was Hip Hop and the 2008 Presidential Election. The participants tend to vary and for this one performer/activist M-1 of dead prez, political organizer Angela Woodson, professor Dr. Dawn-Elissa Fischer, activist Rosa Clemente, and performer Rico Pabon (whose wife, Ms. Ramos, works at our school) sat in on the discussion while author Bakari Kitwana moderated. The audience was predominately seniors, nearly all of whom were African American or Latino. Topic-wise, everything from sexism to voting was covered. After the panel discussion, a question and answer session took place, which included an impromptu performance by one of our students. Below are student reflections on the panel. The overwhelming response was positive and as a teacher I’m super glad that we were able to make this happen. In the teachers’ defense, as you read the feedback, some students made it sound like this was the first time they ever got to talk about sexism in pop culture or were given inspirational words. That’s certainly not the case, but as long as they responded to someone, it’s good! Hopefully we can do this again next year.
• Inner City MiracleHip-hop Book Review Autobiography of TV's Judge Greg Mathis.
• I Got Thunder: Black Woman Songwriters and Their CraftHip-hop Book Review An insightful review of a book highlighting interviews with prominent singers and songwriters, including Abbey Lincoln, Angelique Kidjo, Brenda Russell, Chaka Khan, Dianne Reeves, Dionne Warwick, Miriam Makeba, Narissa Bond, Nina Simone, Nona Hendryx, Oleta Adams, Pamela Means, Shemekia Copeland, Shirley Caesar, Tokunbo Akinro, Toshi Reagon, and Tramaine Hawkins.
• The Rap on Mr. DueyAcademic Writing Michigan-based teacher puts together a CD to help students learn basic skills and as a teacher and hip-hop fan, it's good! My boy Brandon Greene of Las Vegas shared this piece about Mr. Duey's efforts to educate the youth!
• Locke 1928Hip-hop Book Review I remember walking in Oakland, CA during the 2006 May Day protests against anti-immigration legislation. Never before had I seen so many Latino people waving the U.S. flag. In that moment I realized that the traditional American symbols don’t define us. We define the symbols and places in which we live. The protest was a moment that shifted my perspective from being one of, “Only old U.S. vets wave the flag” to “This country should be proud to see such individuals and families carrying its flag”. Reading Ryan’s book reemphasized the lesson I learned in May 2006. Not because the characters are exceptionally heroic but because their story is unique and specific to California in the early 1900s. Ryan is able to portray the depths to which the characters need one another, even as they seek self –determination. While her book is not politically motivated it is a contribution to the ever involving understanding of our culture and history.
• Hip Hop Education 101Academic Writing Educator Marcella Runell Hall gives an overview of how hip hop is being used in the classroom, across the country, as well as some of the controversy. I'm way late on posting this article, which came out nearly a year ago on Vibe magazine's website. Sorry Marcella!
• Off the CuffIdentity/Culture Journal Entry Oakland teens share their thoughts on growing up in Oakland, including violence, peer pressure, and White people! One thing that has stood out to me over the past three years of teaching at Oakland Unity High School in California is the high level of discussion that we have in class. I really wish that people, including policy makers and other teachers, could hear the students share their thoughts on topics ranging from the war in Iraq to universal health care. Just as important have been the numerous informal conversations that have taken place. During one particular violent weekend in Oakland it was obvious that many of the students I work with wanted to talk about what happened. We decided to get together one afternoon so I could interview them. Interestingly enough, while our school is pushing 80% Latino, the three students who showed up were all African American. They had worked all day and it was a blazing hot so they were a bit more reserved than usual. Yet it was an interesting conversation nonetheless. I was tempted to write an article but decided that it would be best to let them speak for themselves. While it doesn’t really come out in this conversation, these three are quite involved with activities such as Upward Bound, fashion shows, out of state college visits, and Tech Bridge, a science and engineering program for teenage girls. Next time we’ll have to focus on those accomplishments. All three will be seniors for the 2007-2008 school year.
• Drive-ByHip-hop Book Review In-depth look at the conditions that lead to the death of an Oakland teenager at the hands of his peers.
• Oakland high school students share impressions of JapanCurriculum The following are responses to an interview from Japan by some of my students at Oakland Unity High School in California. They were asked to reflect on points that they could relate to or found interesting as the interview covered a range of topics, including immigration and the status of women. Note that this was just one assignment and students were exposed to a variety of perspectives. For example, after reading this interview many felt that Japan was a great place for immigrants. However, they later had readings by non-Japanese who had less than pleasant things to say about their stay in Japan. Some of the facts are incorrect, yet these comments capture a moment, as well as give some insight into the thoughts of Oakland youth on similarities and differences between two seemingly disparate countries and cultures. One thing that I took away from this assignment was a reminder of how influenced people can be by so little. This was one interview, with one person, yet many of the students based their whole impression of Japan off of it. It’s a good reminder of the power of adults and teachers and why we have to be so aware of what information we use and how we use it.
• Letters to 'Mad Mike' BanksCurriculum Students in the music and social justice class at my high school in Oakland recently did a unit with a techno focus. Among other things, they watched a documentary featuring Underground Resistance founder "Mad Mike" Banks and read a recent interview with him. As one assignment they wrote letters to Banks in response to this interview. Here are some letters with more on the way! Hopefully I'll be posting Mike's response as well.
• Techno Research ProjectCurriculum This was a recent project assigned to a high school music class that I teach. It's very Detroit biased, but that's more due to my ignorance and time constraints rather than maliciousness. Students were free to do research on groups, organizations, producers, etc, not on this list and we brain-stormed other ideas. Nonetheless, it was fun to watch students in Oakland, CA download Detroit Jit videos and ask me if I knew "Mad Mike" Bank's e-mail address. BTW, we did lots of prep for this project, including watching videos, breaking down tracks, etc. I teach the lecture portion of the class and the lab (studio) portion is run by my fellow teacher Mr. Castillo, aka DJ Chango'. While researching for this project the students were also responsible for creating their own techno tracks using Garage Band. Advanced students use other software such as Reason. There's some good stuff being created!