REAL TOXIC MASCULINITY!

Why black men need to talk to one another instead of "beefing" on social media! 

After the death of famed and respected hip-hop artist and entrepreneur Nipsey Hustle, rapper Kodak Black was recorded making advances and distasteful comments regarding Nipsey’s fiancé, Lauren London. He made mention of giving her time to grieve before he went after her. His untimely and crass remarks hit a nerve throughout the black community and on social media. Some other artists like T.I. and The GAME made response videos in which rebuked and even threatened Kodak Black for his comments. Lauren London’s ex and father of one of her children, Lil’ Wayne, also weighed in and made threats and promises against the health and welfare of Kodak black if he continued to pursue these actions.

Kodak Black has been known to be a professional troller. He often makes statements and does videos that spark controversy. That notwithstanding, most just chalk it up to ignorance, thirst baiting, and clout chasing. However, these recent statements have opened up a new can of worms. Nipsey Hustle is regarded as a “good dude” who was trying to make changes in his community. He bought real-estate, opened businesses, talk about investments, created a technology center so that people in his community could have access. He was really on the precipice of change and making effective stride towards empowering a community. As a member of the infamous gang known as “The Crips” Nipsey had one hand in business and the other was in the streets. He was making a transition from illegal to legal and from corner work to the executive board room. In other words, he was an example of real change and transformation.

The tragedy of this situation besides the death of a man with a vision is that so-called leaders in the hip-hop community saw fit to threaten Kodak Black because of his obvious offenses. This way of thinking seems to be the antithesis of what Nipsey was trying to do. Not that Nipsey was above physical confrontation, but he sincerely wanted his brother to turn the corner on violence and self-hate. Why wouldn’t The GAME, T.I., and Lil’ Wayne, who have access to Kodak Black, and not just go see him, call him and try to reach the young brother? He’s obviously, misguided, ignorant or just an asshole. No matter what his issues are, to threaten his openly only makes him dig in deeper. Makes him double down on said comments.

It has often been said that when black men left the home they left the neighborhoods and the community suffered. There were no men to teach young men the rules of engagement, or conflict resolution. This is so evident in the case of Kodak Black, T.I., The GAME, and Lil’ Wayne. Someone forgot to tell them that all thoughts are not to be expressed, especially on social media. These brothers need to sit down, discuss their grievances and stop the threats. These threats often lead to dead black men!