. . . and the ‘hood pass’
by Guest Contributor Adam Mansbach, originally published at The Boston Globe
As John Mayer’s racially-charged comments in Playboy magazine ricocheted around the Internet this week, I found myself exhausted by the sad reality that the national dialogue on race remains driven by the engine of celebrity gaffes and gotcha moments.
Our voracious, ADHD-afflicted news cycle castigates, forgives, and forgets at a rate that precludes sustained discussion, so expect Mayer to spend a week with his head on the chopping block and then jog away, rubbing his neck, to join Chris Matthews, Harry Reid, Michael Richards, Geraldine Ferraro, Don Imus, and John Rocker on the list of figures whose shocking transgressions have faded to dim memories.
An analysis of such incidents and their scant longterm fallout suggests that it is now more acceptable to publicly spout racism than to publicly accuse someone of spouting racism. Look for Mayer to continue to make a vague apology to a fanbase and a punditry eager to excuse racist action because they can find no racist feeling behind it. Look for Mayer to swear he’s never uttered the n-word before and never will again, and look for the context in which he said it and the clumsy if well-intentioned point he was trying to make about white privilege to be obscured.
Look for him to continue not address more problematic statements from the interview, in particular the one about his male organ being a “white supremacist’’ — a flippant attempt to explain his dating preferences that takes up the language of dehumanization and reveals a blithe willingness to reinforce any number of stereotypes about sex, race, and desirability. Look for the mainstream media to ignore that comment too.
Look for the “hood pass’’ Mayer stumbled so badly in trying to discuss to be serially snatched away and restored in a blogopshere-wide game of capture-the-flag. Far more importantly and indicatively, look for the very notion of a “hood pass’’ to go largely unexplored.
The “hood pass’’ is symbolic of white acceptance, personal or artistic, by the black community. Although both the notion of a monolithic black community and the conflation of blackness with the “hood’’ are problematic, the “hood pass’’ has been widely accepted. Part of the reason may be that it appears to place agency in the hands of black people, as arbiters of who and what constitutes tolerable incursion. Given the profound legacy of white co-option and exploitation of black life and culture, this might seem like a step in the right direction.
The problem with the “hood pass,’’ though, is that it turns racial progressivism from an activity to a state of being. It places engagement with this country’s system of structural racism, and the privileges white people accrue from it, in the past tense — as if everybody in possession of a “hood pass’’ has already fought and won what is actually an ongoing struggle with one’s self and one’s country.
This complacency underwrites the widespread belief of young white Americans that they can be as “down’’ as necessary by consuming black cultural artifacts pushed by media conglomerates whose profits depend on expert marketing of the ghetto to the exurbs, black to white, and visceral “realness’’ to a generation of voyeurs. Full of empathy and short on identity, with few relationships to actual black people and less understanding of the machinations of institutional racism, they conclude that they, too, have “hood passes.’’ Through the magic of circular logic, they then conclude that every stereotype they embrace is as legitimate as they are. Much as Mayer seems to have.
It was a conversation with an old friend, filmmaker Kesime Bernard, that reminded me what we stand to gain by talking about the latest display of ignorance by an avatar of a culture that rewards it. “Our generation has built a cottage industry around uncomfortably edgy racial humor,’’ she wrote, “but the reaction is as important as the delivery.We carve out boundaries in real time. These little celebrity scandals do ‘teach’ us little by little where we stand.’’
I want to believe she’s right — that we can make this not about Mayer’s hood pass, but the hood pass, not one rock star’s cavalier bigotry, but the millions nodding to it. That Americans can learn from where we stand, and that we stand for something. Because if we don’t, as the old saying goes, we’ll fall for anything.
Adam Mansbach is author of “The End of the Jews,’’ and “Angry Black White Boy.’’
Carmen Van Kerckhove is co-founder and president of
Deaf Indian Muslim Anarchist wrote:
But does “hood pass” only apply to white people?
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 12:08 pm ¶
O'Phylia wrote:
To Deaf, no. Basically it applies to any person who thinks they can act ghetto, and thus, feel like they are officially African-American, for reasons their precious minds have conjured up.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 12:49 pm ¶
Nina wrote:
Nice analysis. I should’ve started reading this blog months ago. No idea what has taken me so long. This line almost hurt:
“An analysis of such incidents and their scant longterm fallout suggests that it is now more acceptable to publicly spout racism than to publicly accuse someone of spouting racism.”
Because it rings true not just in popular culture but in everyday life. Thanks for that.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 12:56 pm ¶
Val wrote:
Apparently some musicians can get away with this kind of stuff. It was just a few weeks ago that I learned, from someone here, that Tom Petty has a history of racial insensitivity.
Now I’ve learned that Eric Clapton made a crazy racist statement years ago that seems to have been forgotten. So when the author states that there is seemingly no long term price to pay for this kind of thing I have to agree.
If there is no price to pay then we can expect this to happen again.
http://www.thefirstpost.co.uk/people,756,how-clapton-sparked-an-anti-racist-revolution,20473
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 1:19 pm ¶
Eva wrote:
I think this is interesting but I have a question. If someone says something racist/insensitive, how long do you shun them? What I’ve learned in my life is sooner or later everybody will say something stupid, someone will offend someone, even if they don’t mean to. Do you accept an apology?
I’ve been sober for 22 years and I know I have done and said a lot of nasty things when I was younger. But should a person judge me on something that I said in 1978 when I was drinking and doing all kinds of drugs, or judge me on what I do now with my life? As for Clapton, I don’t doubt what he said but I also know that he puts a lot of money into a rehab that has helped many people that I know stay sober.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 1:32 pm ¶
Lina wrote:
The quick fall in popularity of Mayer’s racial comments are disappointing, but not surprising. (Notice though, how people will STILL bring up the Taylor Swift incident whenever Kanye West is mentioned). Honestly, as a black college student I feel as though the argument that racism will gradually end with each new generation is ridiculous. There are many white people of my age that express racist sentiments, just like John Mayer. Their expressions may not be quite as overt as his, but it’s definitely there.
“This complacency underwrites the widespread belief of young white Americans that they can be as “down’’ as necessary by consuming black cultural artifacts pushed by media conglomerates whose profits depend on expert marketing of the ghetto to the exurbs, black to white, and visceral “realness’’ to a generation of voyeurs.”
Too true. I saw this attitude far too much in middle school & high school. Too many white students believing that listening to a rap song or idolizing a black celebrity automatically meant they knew me and every other black person. I also hope that Ms. Bernard is right, but looking at the main reactions of white people to these situations and seeing the same pattern repeated, I don’t really have much to hope for.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 2:07 pm ¶
Matt Pizzuti wrote:
Not trying to be nit-picky or to derail the conversation, but as someone who has been diagnosed with ADHD, I think the idea of the “ADHD-afflicted news cycle” really misrepresents what ADHD actually is, and reinforces some mis-perceptions.
It’s not like people with ADHD are dropping and picking up new activities every 20 minutes, which is how it was used as an analog for the news. And having ADHD is more like being attuned to a greet-things-as-they-come hunter-gatherer lifestyle than it is like being attuned to a postmodern media lifestyle.
The idea that people seem to have that ADHD is just a sign of your intellectual laziness, a mythical diagnosis pushed on you by psychiatrist, or most commonly a sign that you watch way too much TV, can be pretty frustrating – heartbreakingly frustrating – when you personally know you can contribute to the world and are just struggling very hard to conform to the style and meticulousness of professional culture.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 2:12 pm ¶
Lynda wrote:
I went to high school in a white middle class area and I think one of the biggest problems is that alot of people (including a younger more naive version of myself) thought racism wasn’t a big problem anymore, that everything was equal now and that can contribute a lot to that attitude of ‘hood pass’
As for what you were saying Eva I think there’s a difference between being truly sorry and covering your butt. We don’t know for sure where John Mayer stands because we are not him but his actions don’t seem to communicate (to me at least) that he’s sorry. His actions and attitude seem to say “I want to play black music and have black fans but I don’t want to know any black people personally or have an open and honest discussion about my biases and how I can overcome them” maybe that’s not how he means to come off but that’s what I get from him.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 2:15 pm ¶
Eva wrote:
@Lynda:
You are correct but only time will tell in Mayer’s case.
Also, Michael Richards, Geraldine Ferraro, Don Imus, and John Rocker, of all those people I think Imus is the only one still in the media; I could not tell you what any of those people are doing today, but they certainly are not as popular as they once were.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 2:55 pm ¶
Ismone wrote:
“This complacency underwrites the widespread belief of young white Americans that they can be as ‘down’ as necessary by consuming black cultural artifacts pushed by media conglomerates whose profits depend on expert marketing of the ghetto to the exurbs, black to white, and visceral ‘realness’ to a generation of voyeurs.”
In my own experience, it took me a while to even realize that what I was consuming were “black cultural artifacts.” It was just slang, toughness, edge, whatever you want to call it. Which is even more worrisome. Even though the context was obvious, and it was clear what it was we thought we were trying to imitate to anyone who was paying attention, most of us didn’t pay attention. I realized this when I became close enough to a fellow student in grad. school that he became comfortable enough around me to use some serious slang. And instead of responding by loosening up myself, I froze because I realized, in that moment, that my slang really was a mockery of other people’s, and while it was natural to me, in context, it could be pretty offensive, and I really liked the guy, so I didn’t want to appear to be mocking. So the distance loomed, instead of being closed up.
And let’s be clear–it was my fault. First in adopting a certain manner of imitation, and second, for not even bothering to realize that was what I had done, and third, for not being able to address it in a way that didn’t make my friend feel uncomfortable. He probably just thought I was judging him for being slangy.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:07 pm ¶
Keshet wrote:
Eva – The counterpoising of Eric Clapton’s donations to a rehab facility does not even remotely work. We’re not gods judging the purity of human souls, we’re anti-racist, anti-oppression activists deconstructing and fighting against incidents like Clapton’s. And while you may have said some nasty things when you were still drinking, racism is a systemic problem that exists beyond the scope of personal blunders, so once again it’s incorrect to talk about forgiveness of racist acts by public figures in the same breath as forgiveness of a loved one for misbehaving.
Clapton could rescue a thousand kittens, but his rant was still racist, still oppressive, and still perfectly fitting into the context of a society that accepts and reproduces systems of racism and oppression.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:12 pm ¶
Jamerican Muslimah wrote:
I have a problem with how being “ghetto” or “hood” has become synonymous with being authentically Black.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:19 pm ¶
VEe wrote:
Out of all the things to explore, this article wants to delve into the hood pass? Hmmm . . .
Here’s a better article title The Mayer of Pigtown that connects a “gaffe” involving Eric Clapton.
http://rebelfrequencies.blogspot.com/2010/02/mayer-of-pigtown.html
I don’t think his person is being honest. People do not forget. Some incidents follow people for the rest of their lives, while some other people get a pass. Some people get crucified in the media while others are forgiven in the realm of public opinion. Look no further than professional sports for many examples.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:31 pm ¶
VEe wrote:
oooohh . . . small quick edit – I don’t think this person (Adam Mansbach) is being honest (read: real)
Last time I checked media guys like Marv Albert still has a job. Media guys like Jim Lampley past incidents were forgotten, forgiven and he still has a job.
So I guess he is correct, because the news cycle castigates, forgives, and forgets some public figures while others are not so fortunate.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:38 pm ¶
jvansteppes wrote:
So, a ‘hood pass’ is maybe tantamount to letting a vampire in your house? It’s a silly analogy but I can’t think of any other.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:49 pm ¶
Mer wrote:
“An analysis of such incidents and their scant longterm fallout suggests that it is now more acceptable to publicly spout racism than to publicly accuse someone of spouting racism.”
Absolutely! I don’t think that horrible “shoot the messenger” attitude is limited to race, though. I observed a recent incident of domestic abuse where the girl was assaulted by her live-in boyfriend, and not only did nobody stop being friends with the guy, but the few people that did speak up for the girl got stared at as if THEY were the problem for “starting drama”.
This is a younger crowd, not at all with “traditional” values, and who probably would have claimed themselves “feminists” of some sort. Loathesome.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:52 pm ¶
Eva wrote:
@Keshet:
I think what you are saying if an individual, not in the public eye says something it does not carry as much weight as if a person in the public eye says the same thing. i.e. one person might be hurt by a nasty comment, but if the same comment is broadcast on TV, millions of people can be hurt.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 3:56 pm ¶
Montclair Mommy wrote:
I am SO glad that racialicious finally talked about John. What a trite, privileged little…okay, breathe, breeeeeathe….phew. Don’t want to ruin my Friday now!
My husband said, tongue in cheek, when he heard about this that ‘people who really have a “hood pass” would never use it to say the n-word’. And I hurt for the little girls of color that will hear parts of what he said and have it reinforce their feelings of being Other.
Can someone fill me in on Geraldine Ferraro’s comments? I must have blinked and missed the outrage somehow. I’m not surprised, its so quick and dirty and somehow “We are outraged! He/she is a very, very bad person that is nothing like us! I distance myself from this and refuse to see that our society condones and encourages divisions! I’m not like John or Michael or Eric! I love Black people! I use a Black dentist!/My daughter’s teacher is Black!/My best friend when I was two was Black!/Me and my Black co-worker once got coffee together!/I let Black people use my bathroom!” Its just so ridiculous.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 4:00 pm ¶
B. Durbin wrote:
Eva— time alone does not merit forgiveness; time plus apology plus and understanding of why what you said is wrong is necessary. Penance was a good idea for a reason.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 4:41 pm ¶
RCHOUDH wrote:
Nowadays it does seem like acting like a racist jerk will get you some publicity, which is what celebrities are urged to thrive upon (bad publicity is better than no publicity after all). Along with the above mentioned dingbats you have such “wondrous” stars as Paris Hilton and Miley Cyrus uttering and acting all racist without it affecting their fame.
And let’s not forget the ultimate example of a white star getting a “hood pass”: Eminem. The guy spouted racist crap about black women ( as well as misogynistic crap about Mariah Carey) and got off scot free. People act as if his “hood pass” can never be revoked just because he can rap and he’s authentically from the “hood”.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 5:16 pm ¶
Oyan wrote:
Have ‘people’ forgiven Jesse Jackson for his slur on Jews, or Sharpton for Tawana Brazwley?
If they have not, should they?
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 5:32 pm ¶
Eva wrote:
@B. Durbin
I get your point. It’s like you’re married to a man and he hits you, then apologizes and never hits you again for ten years, but never goes to therapy to find out what is wrong with him to make him hit you in the first place. Eventually, he’ll hit you again even if decades have gone by because he’s never gotten to the root of the problem.
That’s why this stuff keeps happening, I believe, racism, classism, sexism never gets examined. I mean why does someone have to put another person down to feel superior. There’s an old saying, if I have to push your head in the mud, that means I’m in the mud too.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 5:44 pm ¶
Scribe wrote:
I’ve been around enough non-black people — even those old enough who should know better — who went around acting “down” and using every slang term in the book to know that the majority, if not all, are indeed racist. From my own observation, it didn’t take long for these amateurs to drop the n-word (both -a and in some incidences -er) at the drop of a hat. I find the whole thing to be unwarranted and unsettling, if not, repulsive. Unfortunately, some will never change and will continue to hold this negative mindset — thanks largely in part to the media/film industry feeding these stereotypes — about blacks.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 6:44 pm ¶
Slush wrote:
Maybe real apologies and understanding are what is required for forgiveness, but those don’t usually come across in the media…
I guess I’m surprised at the general response to Eva’s suggestion that it’s okay to let things go and forgive people. I think racism is as unjustifiable and pernicious as the next person, but I don’t generally hold people to an entirely unforgiving standard when they do other horrible or thoughtless things. I prefer to believe in possible redemption for everyone.
I don’t understand Keshet’s distinction between personal blunders that are or are not related to systemic issues like racism. I think the more relevant comparison that gets made is whether you have a personal relationship with the person who has blundered or not. And that begs the question why those standards should be different.
Not that I expect John Mayer to meet even my low standards for deserving forgiveness.
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 7:15 pm ¶
octogalore wrote:
Ineresting article. I agree that the “hood pass” concept, even though it puts the agency in the hands of the black person, is ultimately problematic.
I would not, however, put Geraldine Ferrarro in the group you placed her in. I don’t think what she said was racist (although I do think she shouldn’t have said it).
She said it in the context that she herself wouldn’t have gotten where she got if she weren’t female. She wasn’t suggesting Obama had nothing else to offer, just that because he was a state senator who’d only recently become part of the US Senate, and shortly thereafter began to campaign for Pres, without much of a voting history, the enthusiasm generated by the historic nature of his candidacy was a key factor. Just as was true for Ferraro (My mom and I, then a kid, stood out in the snow for hours to get her autograph mostly on the strength of this history). You may disagree with this, but why is it racist?
Posted 19 Feb 2010 at 10:37 pm ¶
honeybrown1976 wrote:
There’s no such thing as a hood pass.
When the opportunity to exert your privilege arrives, the likelihood of using it is omnipresent.
The myth of the hood pass needs to die.
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 12:17 am ¶
Jaine wrote:
You forgot to mention Eminem and his racist tape he did back before he became famous, youtube ‘Eminem – Foolish Pride’ it as worse as what was mentioned above.
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 6:06 am ¶
ericael wrote:
@ O’Phylia
I have to disagree with the definition of the “hood pass” being a non-black person who can “act ghetto”– which is a term that sets me off in a whole other sense– and thinks that makes them authentically Black. The term “hood pass” has meant someone (non-black) who is widely believed to be widely accepted and/or respected in the Black community. It’s not about that person’s behavior or feelings of cultural similarities– I’d say Coldplay, Vanessa Carlton, and Robert Greene have “hood passes” based on the number of Black celebrities who discuss liking them or their work, not because they “think they’re Black.”
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 10:50 am ¶
Brenda wrote:
Someone fill me in: what exactly is a “hood pass”? Honestly, before reading the John Mayer interview, I’ve never heard that phrase before in all of my years on earth.
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 11:05 am ¶
Olivia wrote:
‘Look for him to continue not address more problematic statements from the interview, in particular the one about his male organ being a “white supremacist’’ — a flippant attempt to explain his dating preferences that takes up the language of dehumanization and reveals a blithe willingness to reinforce any number of stereotypes about sex, race, and desirability. Look for the mainstream media to ignore that comment too.’
Just reiterating this again
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 11:37 am ¶
Gregory A. Butler wrote:
Oyan # 21 – Why does Al Sharpton need to be “forgiven” for believing Tawana Brawley?
A young Black woman who lived in Wappengers Falls, NY, a predominantly White suburb of New York City,reported that she’d been kidnapped and raped in the woods by 6 White men, one or more of whom may have been a cop.
All Sharpton did was what any decent person should do when a woman reports that she’s been raped HE BELIEVED HER and used his prominence as an activist to advocate for her.
It turned out that the story was more complex than that.
Basically, Brawley had a horrible relationship with her mother’s husband. Among other conflicts, he objected to the young man she chose to date.
One day, when she’d skipped high school to go to visit her boyfriend, Brawley, with her mother’s assistance, fabricated the rape story to explain her absence (and to get Brawley’s stepfather to be less hostile and more loving to her).
The plan backfired when Brawley’s grandmother, who grew up in the segregated South and had been an eyewitness to KKK atrocities, believed Brawley’s story insisted that she go to the hospital and file a police report.
One of the reasons that Brawley’s grandmother believed Brawley’s story was that she had seen Brawley being street harassed by a group of White landscapers just a few weeks before – and that wasn’t the first time that Brawley, a high school student, had been street harassed by adult White men.
Sharpton had no way of knowing any of this when he and his supporters got involved in Brawley’s case.
And, to his credit, long after the case left the headlines, Sharpton still has gone out of his way to assist Brawley, who is now a college graduate and a parent living in another state.
The real tragedy with the Brawley case?
Long before the real story came out, the mainstream media assumed that Brawley was lying – and the fact that they printed her name, which they would not have done to a White woman in the same situation
Just compare how the media covered the Central Park Jogger case, which was going on at the same time.
Bottom line, there are a lot of things I disagree with Sharpton on, but his initial reaction to the Brawley case is NOT one of those things.
Posted 20 Feb 2010 at 2:54 pm ¶
ashlynn wrote:
There’s a difference in being accepted by the Black community and a hood pass. Acceptance is just that- usually based on artisitc or political merit. We can just call this a simple pass.
But a hood pass is definitely based off of what mainstream society brands as “Black culture”- much of which is loaded with negative stereotypes.
For example, many would say that Robert DeNiro gets a regular pass-acceptance- because he is married to Grace Hightower, who is a (gorgeous, btw) black woman, and has been sort of a person who positively reinforces black beauty by having dated and celebrated them. Also, Casino was awesome.
Now, a hood pass is different. It’s based off of mostly hip-hop and rap anectdotes, language, and “customs”, but definitely branches out into larger stereotypes of Black people and culture.
Probably the biggest example: Bill Clinton got a hood pass because he cheated on his wife- in a fairly big way. He was a “pimp.” See what I’m saying?
And another one: Scarface(or arguably Al Pacino himself). Revered by many black people because of his lifestyle, his power, his money and his mercilessness. He was a “gangster”.
Now on to John Mayer himself. His alleged hood pass can split two ways. By nature of playing some sort of blues music, he would be “down”. So, hood pass. But his “down”- ness, I would argue, comes from a small part of the Black community- most likely familiar with him through Dave Chappelle (who, being an excellent critic regarding race and black culture, all while being hilarious). On the flip side, however, many black people listen(ed) to and love(ed) Mayer’s music- despite the narrow-mindedness of many comments on the previous Mayer thread and elsewhere- and so accepted him- therefore, giving him on a regular pass (if even that- they just liked him, damnit).
IMO, John Never had a hood pass to begin with. Even as a fan, I don’t think his talent would have penetrated that much, even with his MJ tribute. But anyway: Dear John- less Eric Clapton/Justin Timberlake, more Robin Thicke, ‘kay?
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 2:09 am ¶
Shannon wrote:
Great article. The entire concept of a hood pass is detrimental to the black community. Usually people are said to have the “hood pass” for exhibiting stereotypical behavior like loud talking, cussing, and dating black people, all of which are not exclusive to the black community. It is in fact an insult to me as an intelligent and articulate black woman. My non POC friends have no pass, I like them for who they are and not what they pretend to be.
@ Gregory Butler
I agree with you completly. In the history of the United States white women yelling rape against black men was immediately believed by the men of the community. As we now know in many of these instances the men were being accused falsely. The mainstream media always portrays a black female victim as a liar.
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 8:48 am ¶
Oyan wrote:
To Gregory Butler, re: the Tawana Brawley & Al Sharpton case, I agree. I only mentioned it because whenever there is some ‘racial’ situation occuring, folk online, who have grievance with Rev. Sharpton, always bring this case up, as if Sharpton intentionally misled the public to gain media attention. I always believed that Rev. Sharpton was attempting to engage in this situation, as he believed the young woman. Also, many seemed to have not ‘forgiven’ Sharpton for this supposed transgression, which is why I brought it up.
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 12:12 pm ¶
ulises wrote:
i always have found the whole idea of a “hood pass” to be an extension of the whole “white people have no culture” argument i’ve heard a whole lot from liberal 20-something year olds. Constantly forgetting the fact that western culture is predominantly from a white perspective, there always seems to be the desire to latch on to other culture’s to appear to have some kind of depth.
Regardless, i’m a cuban american, and listen to hiphop predominantly, but very much appear as just a dorky white guy. I don’t pretend that i’ve got any hood pass, and i acknowledge the fact that my appearance as a white guy gives me the same privileges as actually being a white guy.
the whole hood pass thing is an attempt to have your cake and eat it too, remaining privileged while attempting to be “post-racial”. Instead of “but i have black friends,” its now “but i have black culture”
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 5:02 pm ¶
maus wrote:
“the whole hood pass thing is an attempt to have your cake and eat it too, remaining privileged while attempting to be “post-racial”. Instead of “but i have black friends,” its now “but i have black culture””
I also see it as a hip-hop take on the new-age native-american culture appropriation, instead of the faux-authenticity of white neoshamanism, being “given” a native sounding name and taking up airs of becoming something, these people get insta-”street cred” without the care, understanding, or actual interest in a people. It’s a false depth of character, a novelty.
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 8:51 pm ¶
Phil Deeze wrote:
“Hood pass” and “street cred” are terms that I’ve never heard a REAL thug use. It’s made-up terms by white people to impress each other and define something that really can’t be defined.
John Mayer’s mistake, besides opening up his yap for that interview, is forgetting where this musical exchange came from. It came from young white musicians originally admiring jazz and blues music. Mayer can appropriate from the blues men he claims to “admire,” but with admiration comes respect.
I have a friend who comes from a culture where his people, he claims, do not date outside their race. And that’s cool with me. But this same guy and his friends routinely wanted me to “hook them up” with black women, which I never would do. They’d ask how can I be their friend and not “help them out.” I said that, first of all, I’m not your pimp or ghetto tour guide. Second, if I can’t date your sister, you can’t date mine. Door swings both ways.
John Mayer wants to appropriate black music and he cites genre of black music as his inspiration and draws on that in order to sell records (and black folks buy records.) But his comments smacked of something very sick and sinister within his psyche. The Playboy interviewer really did a number of Mayer and led him right where he WANTED to go.
Posted 21 Feb 2010 at 10:16 pm ¶
TAG wrote:
The idea of a “hood pass” is racist in of itself. Who coined that phrase anyways?
Posted 22 Feb 2010 at 2:04 pm ¶
Sonnyboy wrote:
First, I agree with everyone who has a problem with the concept of the “hood pass” and ghetto=black.
Second, I was in the airport a lot this weekend due to traveling, and as I predicted the last time I commented on a thread about John Mayer on Racialicious, the newstands were filled with celebrity magazines in which Jessica Simpson and Jennifer Aniston were featured prominently on the cover with headlines asking the question of how they were dealing with the insults lobbed at them by Mayer during his interview. No Keri Washington anywhere.
Don’t get me wrong–Mayer’s comments were sexist as much as they were racist–but I am irked beyond belief that so much of the mainstream media feels the real story is that he wronged poor little Jess and Jennifer.
Like Taylor Swift, their fledgling celeb status will be given a boost, and I just can’t help but feel that generally its okay to be racist and sexist or even a jerk (talking to you Kanye) but not okay to hurt the feelings of skinny blonde white women.
Posted 22 Feb 2010 at 10:41 pm ¶
karinova wrote:
@Brend & TAG (and everyone),
John Mayer invented the term “hood pass”!
The actual term is “ghetto pass,” and while I’m not fond of it, it’s been around for a very long time. (For example, Ice Cube used the term in 1991 on the song “Death Certificate; see here.) I have no idea why everyone has decided to take up Mayer’s doubly clueless terminology. That says something. I’m just not sure what.
Posted 28 Feb 2010 at 7:34 pm ¶