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On the whole I agree with the statement about the misogynistic nature of Hip-Hop. However as with all aspects of life, it takes two to tango and this mistreatment of women was gradual. For the first decade of Hip-Hop there wasn't an equal playing field but it was close. It wasn't until right around 88-89 that Hip-Hop began to change into the abusive music it has become. As a matter of fact, Ice Cube made it a point to bring on Yo-Yo who created the IBWC (Intelligent Black Women's Coalition) at the same time that Queen Latifah headed up the her record label and created the song U.N.I.T.Y addressing the constant barrage of calling women bitches and mistreating them. The unfortunate situation was that mainstream Hip-Hop continued it's onslaught and as gangsta rap began to fade, southern Hip-Hop and Masta P and Cash Money came on to the scene with ridiculous infectious songs that women danced to these songs instead of fighting against it. I mean, women danced to "Girl you look good, why don't you back that azz up!" There has been a degradation in the mainstream since that hasn't slowed down for 20 years. Whatever power Hip-Hop had when the Message and White Lines and Fight The Power was made has been pushed to the back by the mainstream garbage that takes the lead in the community. As I've said though, as the music goes, so do the people and the music hasn't done shit in 30 years in the Black community and look at where we are.

I actually didn't intend for you to run it. I took a few minutes to create one as an example. I have to wonder though if people are going to have a problem making their own banners and get scared away from doing so because they don't know how. I am going to make more banners and upload them of course, but just for those who don't have a lot of expertise I will add this explanation of how I made the banner up there with just the tools on this computer and not Adobe products: 1. Open Microsoft Publisher to a blank page 2. Once it's open use the shapes button on the tool bar to create your square or rectangle. Make the rectangle according to your ruler bar at the top about 10 inches long and 10 2 inches tall 3. Use the word art feature to create the words, or if you have a picture then fill the rectangle with the picture and then add the word art. 4. Once you come up with the ad copy then you can select all on the page and right click the items choose Save as picture, and select png, jpg, or gif. 5. Once the pic is saved then go into Microsoft Office Picture Manager 6. Go to crop and you can then reduce the size to 728x90 or whatever shape you decided to use. I hope this helps out a bit.

Yes, female rappers couldn't whip the males, so they joined them. But I'm not talking about the performers. I'm talking about the general population of black women who suffered from the effects of being demeaned by the male gangsta rappers.

Rap is predominately male. However there are a few females that weren't dish towels. Sha Rock, Lisa Lee, Salt and Pepa, Yo Yo, Queen Latifah, Mone Love, and my favourite MC Lyte.

As usual, when it came to earning respect, black women fared very poorly in the musical revolution which Rap ushered in. They are still trying to get out from under the labels of bitches and ho's, still trying to change the booty shakin images that garnished Rap videos.. Where lyrics were concerned, Rap didn't reflect black womanhood, it shaped it in a negative way, and turned gullible young women into promiscuous groupies and abused girlfriends, eager to participate in the gangsta life. In a way, Rap could be deemed a necessary evil created by a society where art imitates life. But "evil" it was because in the process of exposing the sordid street life of the inner city, it glorified it. Rap made and continues to make millionaires out of street poets, but has done very little to improve the lot of the rank and file who relate to it.