Lupe Fiasco Goes On Twitter Rant Against "Uppity Black Ni--as,"

[Serious]

SNCC-Events: Freedom Ballot

SNCC members viewed gaining the right to vote as a significant move towards racial equality in the South. If blacks had the power of the vote, SNCC felt they would have influence over many important aspects of southern politics. SNCC organized the Freedom Ballot in the fall of 1963 in the state of Mississippi, where racial discrimination was the strongest and black voting power was the weakest.

 

[The Real]

All you people shytting on Lupe for expressing his views on voting are pathetic and need to shut the fukk up. Lupe has every right to NOT vote, as well as every right to let everyone know how he feels about voting for the simple fact that he is a TAX PAYING CITIZEN.

What are you saying here? Lupe has every right not to vote and to express his views, but we also have a right to shyt on those same views. Why should we not express disagreement?

And for those of you morons bringing up the civil rights struggles, please show me where MLK, Malcom, Marcus, Eldridge Cleaver, or the other freedom fighter wasted time organizing voting drives in order to get the voice of black people heard? Any one who knows even a modicum of history knows that the original leaders of the civil rights where all about EQUALITY. They knew politicians were not the ones to achieve that aim, and instead organized mass movements educate and organize people in an effort to mitigate the injustice being perpetrated on them by the evil system they found themselves in. Many of the leaders didn't give a fukk about voting because they knew the system was inherently corrupt and didn't even consider them human beings at one point, so voting for demons as a way to achieve change was a fruitless.

Breh... How can you say this? What about the Voting Rights Act that was passed expressly because MLK and the Civil Rights Movement fought for it? What about the famous Bullet or the Ballot speech where Malcolm X specifically tells Black people to exercise their voting rights to the fullest, while also working on other, more radical avenues of change? What about the Black Panther Party's massive voter registration drives? Hell, the very reason it's called the Black Panther Party is because it originated in a small political party trying to get voted into office in a small, local election and then spread out into a community organization. I'm sorry, but on this issue, you are seriously, factually wrong.

Why do you think Republicans are out there trying their hardest to disenfranchise Black and poor voters by making it harder and harder for them to be able to cast a vote? Is it because votes are just useless and meaningless gestures that the "system" set up just to give people the illusion of a voice? Don't you see why this would be inconsistent?

 

[Hiphoplives4eva]

Did this dude just suggest that none of these dudes were advocates of voting in practice?

I can't

Why dont you read my post again instead of getting shocked at conclusions that I didn't draw. THE PROBLEM IS VOTING FOR PEOPLE THAT DO NOT REPRESENT YOUR IDEALS. No one here is against voting, nor did anyone say that voting should be illegal. Its the concept of voting for the lesser of two evils that needs to go. Both Eldridge Cleaver and Marcus Garvey were interested in forming their own political parties that espoused the ideals that they stood for. Simply voting for the sake of voting, regardless of what these demonic politicians stand for is a dumb proposition for any group of people, regardless or race.

 

[Serious]

MLK:

Give US Ballot Speech:
[ame=http://vimeo.com/34759104]Give Us the Ballot on Vimeo[/ame]

“Give Us the Ballot,” Address at the Prayer Pilgrimage for Freedom**

 

[Hiphoplives4eva]

What are you saying here? Lupe has every right not to vote and to express his views, but we also have a right to shyt on those same views. Why should we not express disagreement?



Breh... How can you say this? What about the Voting Rights Act that was passed expressly because MLK and the Civil Rights Movement fought for it? What about the famous Bullet or the Ballot speech where Malcolm X specifically tells Black people to exercise their voting rights to the fullest, while also working on other, more radical avenues of change? What about the Black Panther Party organizing massive voter registration drives? Hell, the very reason it's called the Black Panther Party is because it originated in a small political party trying to get voted into office in a small, local election and then spread out into a community organization. I'm sorry, but on this issue, you are seriously, factually wrong.

Why do you think Republicans are out there trying their hardest to disenfranchise Black and poor voters by making it harder and harder for them to be able to cast a vote? Is it because votes are just useless and meaningless gestures that the "system" set up just to give people the illusion of a voice? Don't you see why this would be inconsistent?

Again, i never said voting itself was bad. No one wants dictatorships. VOTING FOR THE LESSER OF TWO EVILS IS THE PROBLEM. When black people are faced with two parties that could care less about their survival, black people have every right to conciously sit out and NOT vote. Im sure you would have been calling the black panthers a bunch of dumbasses since they didn't allign themselves with the Dems or the Repubs. Lupe is simply expressing his dissatisfaction with the political options he is faced with and has decided to keep his vote in his pocket, like Malcom suggested.

If you feel Obama or Romney represents your ideals, then by all means line up with the rest and vote. Many people have chosen to not to, and I dont blame them.

I personally will be voting for Gary Johnson because he is the only one actually preaching a somewhat sensible platform.

 

[Julius Skrrvin]

Why dont you read my post again instead of getting shocked at conclusions that I didn't draw. THE PROBLEM IS VOTING FOR PEOPLE THAT DO NOT REPRESENT YOUR IDEALS. No one here is against voting, nor did anyone say that voting should be illegal. Its the concept of voting for the lesser of two evils that needs to go. Both Eldridge Cleaver and Marcus Garvey were interested in forming their own political parties that espoused the ideals that they stood for. Simply voting for the sake of voting, regardless of what these demonic politicians stand for is a dumb proposition for any group of people, regardless or race.

No, you insinuated that a wide range of civil rights activists did not advocate voting and that is patently false. And not encouraging people to vote in my opinion is counter to the goals of a democracy in general, so yes, I will rail against it. If it was me, I would make voting mandatory (with an option to select "none of the above" or "abstain").

 

[Serious]

Campaigning

Marcus Garvey, through the UNIA, campaigned for black rights, including issues of racial discrimination, voting rights and lynching. However, unlike many other Black Rights organizations, the UNIA believed in racial segregation rather than integration. Garvey believed that black people and white people could never lived harmoniously and encouraged black people to strive to become successful independently of white dominated society. A natural extension of this ethos was the belief in "in the principle of Europe for the Europeans, and Asia for the Asiatics" and "Africa for the Africans at home and abroad".

Marcus Garvey Biography Part 4 - Jamaica Travel and Culture .com

 

[The Real]

Why dont you read my post again instead of getting shocked at conclusions that I didn't draw.

Well, this is what you said initially:

And for those of you morons bringing up the civil rights struggles, please show me where MLK, Malcom, Marcus, Eldridge Cleaver, or the other freedom fighter wasted time organizing voting drives in order to get the voice of black people heard?

And as many in this thread have proven, this statement above is historically inaccurate.

Im sure you would have been calling the black panthers a bunch of dumbasses since they didn't allign themselves with the Dems or the Repubs. Lupe is simply expressing his dissatisfaction with the political options he is faced with and has decided to keep his vote in his pocket, like Malcom suggested.

Why would I be criticizing the panthers? They told people to vote. That's all I care about as far as this discussion goes. As for Lupe, you are superimposing your position onto his rant. He's not saying what you're saying now. He's talking nonsense about "the system," as if someone voting for the Green Party or the Civil Rights Movement trying to get the Voting Rights Act passed counts as "participating in the system" that "didn't recognize our humanity" and cosigning US imperialism and all other oppressive behavior.

If you feel Obama or Romney represents your ideals, then by all means line up with the rest and vote. Many people have chosen to not to, and I dont blame them.

I personally will be voting for Gary Johnson because he is the only one actually preaching a somewhat sensible platform.

I don't care if people choose not to vote for any particular candidate as long as they have a reasonable and principled reason for doing so. Lupe is speaking in incoherent and imprecise language that betrays his fuzzy thinking. I don't know why you're trying to defend his ranting.

 

[Hiphoplives4eva]

okay so here we go....

1. nothing lupe said was incorrect

2. lupe consistently records socially conscious music, which when you have the respect and ears of millions of listeners, is definitely a form of social activism.

plus i dont think anyone here knows the full extent of lupe and his socially conscious activities, so maybe we should all reserve judgement in that regard.

3. he's absolutely right about MLK. if you read the last couple dozen speeches MLK gave before he dies he was moving away from voting and political solutions, to economics-based solutions.

he kept reiterating in his last speeches that although the civil rights movement had been successful in certain regards, that it did not succeed in its ultimate objective and his people did not acquire the full scope of freedom they desired, and to get the kind of freedom black people needed they were going to have to organize economically more so than politically.

but MLK never went all the way with "black people shouldn't vote." that was not his stance either. but i think there is some validity to Lupe saying if MLK could witness our current predicament, he would be moving farther and farther away from "voting" as a solution.

4. the idea of slavery is not meant to be taken in the literal sense as if we are still chained and whipped on plantations.

it's a different form of slavery. it is an economic, political, and social slavery. economic in the sense that it takes money to have certain experiences, and to gain access to certain opportunities, and if you dont have access to money or resources, then you also dont have access to those specific experiences and/or opportunities. so it can be extremely limiting as a human being.

political in the sense that we currently lack the power to change these things for ourselves in this society. so not only do we not have the same access to resources and opportunity that other people do, but we cannot even change or alter the system that has created and sustains this imbalance. so again, we are extremely limited.

and social is a mix of economic and political, so if youre economic and political situation is fukked, your social situation is most likely fukked too.

so this system is incredibly limiting in a lot of regards. and those limits amount to a form of "slavery" in the sense that some people are not free to move like they need to move to sustain themselves and their loved ones in a humane way.

but folks are right, it is not to be taken in the same context as the atlantic slave trade.


5. when it comes to the idea of voting in this upcoming election i have been to both extremes, and now i have balanced myself in the middle.

on one hand i absolutely see the need to be involved in maintream politics to some degree to maintain the proper levels of checks and balances. because as we saw with bush the beast has no problem taking oppression, exploitation, and greed to the extremes.

on the other hand, mainstream politics and the presidential election cannot be the pinnacle of our political activism. so often the majority of people get swept away in the campaigns and lofty rhetoric that we dont keep our eye on the prize, and for a lot of people their political activism starts and stops with these big elections. so what ends up happening is that people spend most of their time and energy focusing on the most impotent parts of our political system.

so to bring it full circle i think we ALL need to better balanced with how we spend our political time and energy, and be better balanced with the activities we decide to undertake, because social activism cannot start and stop with voting, but for most people thats exactly what it does.

and since things are so UNbalanced right now, lupe's extremism is a form of balance... if that makes sense.

The brother Leyet very eloquently stated the truth here and many people conveniently ignored it. I encourage every one to read and understand what this brother is saying.

 

[thekingsmen]

Wheres the evidence of this? Seems like a race based assumption with no facts to back it up.

So you voted for hope and change or voted cause he was a brother? Apparently Samuel L.Jackson voted for him cause he was black. Most the people I know voted for him cause he was black. Every black person I know is voting for except myself for Obama. Why? Where is the proof that African Americans voted for Obama for anything other than just that. None of them did their research on his policies.



The only hope Romney has of winning this race is if young people and minorities dont vote. Notice the political affiliations of the posters who want you to give up your rights. I bet they were voting 4 years ago.

Wrong. None of the minorities and young people have anything to do with winning. It's money...money rules the elections.




On topic:



Now its time to vote. Most of America is in agreement that there are problems that require solutions. Even the non-voting crowd agrees here.

The question is how do we begin to address our problems?

Do we (A) vote for elected representatives who will hopefully serve the will of the people?

None of them serve the people in where corporations and special interest groups are involved. Get the money out of the elections....then things will change in the voting system.



Or do we (B) do nothing and give up our right to vote in order to make a moral stand against a system that does not allow you to opt out?

Out of 10 Rights of the Bill of Rights 6 of them are already gone wiped clean off the list. So you voting changes nothing in the policies made that have already gotten rid of most of your standard rights.



If there are some other options, let me know. I havent seen anybody jumpstarting the revolution or planning on moving to another country... so obviously yall non-voting cats intend to roll with option (B). (B) docile.

Revolution is something you need to look up as Malcolm said about revolution....it's violent and bloody.


Moving to another country changes what? U.S. has involved itself politically, socially and economically on almost every country in the world.

 

[Dusty Bake Activate]

Why dont you read my post again instead of getting shocked at conclusions that I didn't draw. THE PROBLEM IS VOTING FOR PEOPLE THAT DO NOT REPRESENT YOUR IDEALS. No one here is against voting, nor did anyone say that voting should be illegal. Its the concept of voting for the lesser of two evils that needs to go. Both Eldridge Cleaver and Marcus Garvey were interested in forming their own political parties that espoused the ideals that they stood for. Simply voting for the sake of voting, regardless of what these demonic politicians stand for is a dumb proposition for any group of people, regardless or race.

Dude real talk, why you can't just man up and take your L? You obviously made a statement that was grossly inaccurate. You said the most important and influential black social activists for equality never "wasted time" registering people to vote. That is false and it has been proven false.

Instead of just admitting you were wrong or you mis-typed or whatever, you're digging in your heels and doubling down and trying to retroactively modify your original argument like your post isn't still sitting there for us to read. You used to do this on and still haven't changed your tune apparently. Not being able to admit you typed factually incorrect statements reflects poorly on you.

 

[Serious]

okay so here we go....

1. nothing lupe said was incorrect

2. lupe consistently records socially conscious music, which when you have the respect and ears of millions of listeners, is definitely a form of social activism.

plus i dont think anyone here knows the full extent of lupe and his socially conscious activities, so maybe we should all reserve judgement in that regard.

I’ll address 1 & 2. 3, was covered. I agree with 4. 5will be covered on the next podcast
1. will relate to number 2
2.
Lupe fiasco is the equivalent to a pseudo intellect. Nothing is wrong with being skeptical, but he bases his rants and arguments off of false equivalencies/ merely half truths. He doesn’t use the scientific method, when it comes to rationalization. In essence, he’s convincing his fans to believe in astrology, meanwhile the rest of HL and I, subscribe to astronomy. Close but no cigar, matter of fact way off, I’m just being nice.
Basically what I'm trying to say is Lupe Fiasco, comes off as weak minded individual who doesn't interpret the facts from an open minded view. Upon his criticism of Obama, he's yet to mention squat about the other branches of government. Last time I checked the government was run off a joint effort. And if you're going to fully criticize the government, I want to hear rants about congress and judicial system as well. Name names Talk about Mitch McConnell. Let's hear about numerous bills that were blocked through congress, because a joint racist effort on behave of the republicans. Hmm, let's consider what happens when we don’t vote. You can ask Californians, who still can’t get medicinal marijuana passed, besides that fact that a large portion of the population smokes and/or supports the initiative.
I feel let down by Lupe, because he seemed like a fairly conscious rapper, when I was in high school. He didn't talk about the typical sex,drugs,money,cars agenda. Then a couple years back he released a horrible album trying to depict the government, matter of fact he didn't he critique the government. Just solely blamed Obama, this leads me to believe he doesn’t fully understand politics. He also can't seem to grasp that the president isn't a dictator and who can do whatever he wants. Idk why he wasn’t criticizing the bush / cheney administration(when he first came on the scene in 06), which kicked started this economic crisis. I didn’t hear sh*t about two back to back wars, wars while cutting taxes. He also doesn't fully understand the pull of MIC and majoring lobbying firms. Son if you're going to go on a rant, you might as well let it all out.


at the usually suspects supporting this......

 

[Dusty Bake Activate]

The brother Leyet very eloquently stated the truth here and many people conveniently ignored it. I encourage every one to read and understand what this brother is saying.

And Leyet, like you, has been known to make similarly factually false statements on this topic. There was a thread a little while ago where I said virtually none of the most influential social activists in American history encouraged people not to vote. He then mentioned the Black Panthers. Like the Panthers didn't register people to vote, and Bobby Seale didn't run for Mayor of Oakland. And Leyet has Huey Newton as his skype avatar.

What's up with these militant anti-establishment negroes who don't know basic ass facts about the stances of the greatest black leaders?

 

[No1]

HHL4E, I won't lie, I considered banning you from this thread for 3 hours for saying that the Civil Rights Movement wasn't about voting rights really or that the leaders weren't about it. Come on son, that's something you learn in second grade. I'm happy others went in because I can't.

I don't know if I can ever take you seriously again.

 

[Serious]

Bill O'Reilly Owned by Rapper Lupe Fiasco On Fox News - YouTube

LoL @ lupe getting sonned by O'Reilly.

And O'Reilly is one cat i can't stand. It happens around 2:29.

Lupe basically demonstrates that he doesn't understand the complexity of politics or the issue at hand.

For example: even if you "kill bin laden" there'll be more people in line to take his place.

The war on terror is a war on an ideology. You can't defeat a war on a ideology instantaneously, by just executing one man, this aint a video game b. They'll always be blowback, just because you kill bin laden, doesn't mean you can just pull out(the military) and everything will return back to normal. You have to properly take care of the situation.

For example: you can't just nut in a girl, then pull out, like there isn't a small chance that she won't end up pregnant. You need to take the proper steps afterwards to ensure, that the sperm is properly killed, otherwise, the blowback / repercussions come within 9months, which will be equivalent to 18+ years of child support.....