November 02, 2004
Hoodie or T-shirt? What's it going to be?
by Liza Sabater
Language and communication is all about signs. Not just the signs we speak but the signs we create on a daily with our gestures. Clothing is a form of communication and the gesture of one shirt can say more about us non-verbally than a thousand words. Granted, people can also exercise their prejudices based on how we dress, but garments come out of choice and that's the risk of expressing one's individuality (or lack thereof).
I'm still taken by Eminem's Mosh. I think it is a powerful statement for one sole reason : It makes a case for looking at voting disenfranchisement from the point of view or class and not just race. In a time when voter voter Suppression is in the hands of black Republicans and a prominent dark-skinned Filipino woman has no qualms about advocating racial profiling, Eminem blasts through all of that not just the words but the images : A nation of hooded young'uns, the anarchy of voters, taking back control over their country and their destiny :
Look in his eyes, it's all lies
The stars and stripes, they've been swiped, washed out, and wiped
And replaced with his own face - mosh now or die
If I get snagged tonight, you'll know why - 'cause I told you to fight
I am past the due-date of the 20 Million Loud, Hip Hop Nation of Rock The Voters. But I came of age with MTV and it has had a significant impact on my connection to popular culture. Last night I "got" P. Diddy's strategy with Home - Citizen Change: Vote or Die. He is not mobilizing people just for votes --if not, he'd be endorsing a candidate. This is about mobilizing a whole nation, a Hip Hop nation of 16-20 million that chooses to not be invisible anymore, who refuses to be cannon fodder and get nothing in return. That's the "Die", they're talking about : complete political invisibility.
Hip Hop has shown in can move money. Now that they have the bling, they're going back to their roots to move, awaken and revolutionize political power. Hip Hop is finally becoming a social movement.
People always remark on how I dress; partly because I don't dress my age :) and partly because I've made it a point to wear slogan t-shirts that are not what a soccer mom ought to be wearing. Like my Got WMD? Bush Lied, the one with M L K on it or the "conversation piece", my Soviet Communist Flag t-shirt. I got that one right after the so called "terror alerts".
So what am I wearing to vote? I'll paint VOTE t-shirts with the kids. I'll definitely wear a black hood.
Mosh the vote.
Vote or die.
Just vote, baby, vote.
On Citizen Change:
Gothamist: P. Diddy Gets The Vote Out
MTV.com - Choose or Lose - Headlines
Southpaw: MOSH the Vote: The Hoodie Army Will Not Back Down
Mosh or Die - Eminem drops his shady act. By Meghan O'Rourke
Eminem: Incitement to Vote?! : SF Bay Area Indymedia
AlterNet: Election 2004: Eminem, Anti-Hero
micah.sifry.com
Mary: the meek shall inherit the earth
Posted by Liza Sabater in 2004 Elections, Activism, Entertainment, Fashion, Music, Pop Culture, Semiotics
Permalink |
Comments (0)
| TrackBack (0) | Technorati Cosmos
Trackbacks
Trackback for this post:http://www.culturekitchen.com/cgi-bin/movabletype/mt-tb.cgi/2464
The following blogs make reference to this post :
