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Gangsta Rap Turning Young Black Men into Animals without Conscience

January 12, 2010 at 1:55 PM Leave a comment

I’ve always found it amazing when I drive down the street and hear gangsta rap blaring from another car in which the occupants are all white.  Please do not get me wrong.  People can listen to whatever type of music they want to listen to (however, when the music emanating from their car is louder than a police, ambulance or fire siren, then maybe…just maybe the volume should go down).  That said, it is also extremely wise to listen to the type of music that builds up, instead of tearing down.

It is obvious that within segments of the white community, young teens who listen to gangsta rap do so because it is the “in” thing to listen to, though it is extremely doubtful that these white kids can honestly (or even remotely), relate to what transpires unfortunately, in many black communities.  Do these kids even listen to the words?  If not, they should and if they do listen to and understand the words, they should also understand that the words represent a lifestyle to many within the gang culture.

If you have ever taken the time to watch a documentary dealing with gangs and gang wars, you are quickly ensconced in a culture of death.  This is the code these young people live by and they know that it is merely a matter of time before someone very close to them dies, or they die.  When this occurs, revenge needs to be meted out for the one who died, normally going after the gang or the gangsta who caused the death.  It is a vicious cycle, one in which gang members are all too familiar.

Years ago, as a young boy of about 13, I read a book by Nicky Cruz called “Run, Baby Run.”  You may remember being introduced to Nicky in the book “The Cross and the Switchblade,” by David Wilkerson, which also became a classic Christian film.  It also (incidentally) gave acting career starts to Erik Estrada.  In the book, “Run, Baby Run,” the reader was introduced to the gang culture of New York City of the 1950s.  Nicky, who came from Puerto Rico, quickly managed to find solace and a feeling of belonging when he joined the Mau Maus, a vicious gang that ruled part of the streets.  He eventually became president of the gang and had a rap sheep longer than my arm.  He wrote of gang wars, how his gang would kidnap a member of another gang and brutally torture and/or even kill that individual.  It was all to make a point to all the other gangs in the area – the Mau Maus had turf, and they were not about to give it up.

While the book had some brutality, Nicky did not focus on it, so it is difficult to know exactly how much and how heinous the violence was inside his gang.  The weapons of choice were switchblades and zip guns (homemade guns which shot .22 caliber bullets).  During a gang war, chains, baseball bats, bottles, trash can lids and whatever else could be found were utilized in the battle.  Last man standing, or routing the enemy meant a win for that gang.  Eventually of course, Cruz became a Christian through the witness of David Wilkerson, and went onto become an evangelist himself.

The gangs and gang wars of the 1950s in the United States seem a far cry from what they have become today.  Gangsta Rap is loud, rebellious, and filled with filthy lyrics, which normally show no value in human life, and consistently denigrate women.  It seems the worse it is, the more it sells.  Listening to it over and over fills the head with valueless words and phrases that stick in the mind.  People who routinely listen to this type of “music,” become indoctrinated with the garbage that is spewed over the speakers.  It tends to change people.  It makes them feel powerful, or cool, and pretty soon, the people listening to it start acting, talking and walking like the gangstas producing the rap “music.”

Because of the lack of success often found within specific areas of large cities, people often feel disenfranchised.  They believe they do not have any way to gain a measure of success legally.  School for them means trying to learn, but more often than not, having to deal with other people who would rather spend time roughing others up.  Dropping out of school, and into the gang culture for many, seems to be the only way to survive and have some semblance of safety.  The gang becomes the family, sworn to protect you and you to them.

The trouble of course, is that the gangs and the “music” they produce does nothing except create young men who are angry, very angry.  In their anger, they believe that the system has let them down (and it probably has, but not before their own flesh and blood has done that), so they learn to strike out.  Isn’t that what they learn by listening to and dwelling on the message of gangsta rap?  The more they can overcome people, the more powerful they feel.  Often, it has nothing to do with anything personal.  It is their desire to rise above their situations and the only way they believe they can accomplish this is by overcoming others.

Because of all this, we are seeing more and more gang-related activity, especially among young black males.  That is tragic.  For all the hype, blame and finger pointing by people like Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson, you would think they (and many other black individuals) would be doing all they can to eradicate problems that young black men face on a daily basis.  In the absence of that, too many young men are encouraged to strike out on their own, to break free from the system, and make their presence known.

“Be a man” is no longer a phrase that means to take it on the chin, or to buck up and remain standing under the pressures of life.  “Be a man” has become something many take to mean “make your mark.”  We are seeing this all too often and it is not only tragic for the men involved, but obviously extremely tragic for the victims, who are often marked out simply because of the ease of getting to them.

One such case occurred not long ago, when a young black man began pounding on the door of a home, where a young woman lived with her dogs.  The dogs were barking like crazy, and the woman was on the phone with 911 asking for help.  Unfortunately, she had just had surgery on her foot, and was unable to move.  The terror in her voice is palpable as the intruder breaks into her home and begins to rape her.  The 911 operator was on the phone with her the entire time, talking between the woman victim and the police, who arrived during the process of the young man raping the woman.  One sheriff later stated that it took 5 officers to get the man off the woman.  Here is the link to hear the complete audio, but please be warned, this is not for the squeamish – Young Man Breaks into Woman’s Home

As can be seen on that very same page, there are a number of crimes committed by young black men, normally against women and as we learn from the incident we have linked to, the men are often driven by a desire to be “cool,” or they prefer to emulate other gangstas in the hopes of gaining respect.

This blog is not about castigating one group of people – black individuals.  It is about noting that too many people are feeling disenfranchised within this world and because of certain elements from the media that feed that notion, while offering a violent solution to it, the problem will continue to exist and will undoubtedly increase.  What can be done?  Well, obviously people need Jesus.  This is the only way that they will stop feeling disenfranchised.  This is the only way they will begin to feel as though they have any value at all, because they do have value as human beings.

Jesus died 2,000 years ago to make salvation available to all people, to anyone who believes on His Name.  His invitation is not extended only to specific culture groups or ethnicities.  His love transcends any and all of that.  However, people cannot be forced to receive His salvation, but it must be extended to them.  What needs to happen is for people like Sharpton and Jackson (who are both “reverends”) to stop preaching a social gospel, and extend the salvation that is offered to all humanity, to those young men who are turning into two-legged animals because of things like gangsta rap.

I believe that we are living in the End Times (since they began with the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ).  We are moving toward a time when Jesus warned that would highly resemble the days of Noah (cf. Matthew 24).  The days of Noah were noted for a number of things:

1. the violence
2. the lack of morality
3. the lack of law
4. the Nephilim
5. the abject rejection of God

We are seeing that again, in 2010.  We are seeing an increase in violence, a complete lack of standardized morality, a rebellious attitude toward laws of the land, the rise of the Nephilim (through UFOology), and ultimately, a full rejection of God.  People are concerned only for themselves and they are concerned with what they can do and what they can say and it does not matter what anyone else says about it.

People break traffic laws for their own convenience and they hate and kill because it is to their best interests.  These are fearful days for sure, and the only refuge is in Christ and the salvation He offers.  While it will not change the world, it will change people, one person at a time.

Entry filed under: Atheism and religion, dispensationalism, Life in America, Posttribulational Rapture, Pretribulational Rapture, Religious - Christian - End Times, Religious - Christian - Prophecy, Religious - Christian - Theology. Tags: al sharpton, david wilderson, gang, gangs, gangsta, gangsta rap, jackson, jesse jackson, nicky cruz, run baby run, sharpton, the cross and the switchblad.