Ardent Rap Foes Are in a Historical Tradition

Re “Rap Foes Put 20 Artists on Hit Lists” (Calendar, May 31): The declarations of William Bennett and C. DeLores Tucker have disturbing historical precedent. In the late 1950s, angry and fearful white parents in New Orleans distributed a pamphlet that declared:

“Stop. Help Save the youth of America. DON’T BUY NEGRO RECORDS . . . The screaming idiotic words, and savage music of these records are undermining the morals of our white youth in America. Call the advertisers of the radio stations that play this type of music and complain to them! Don’t Let Your Children Buy, or Listen to These Negro Records.”

We might commend these angry parents for not recommending government censorship. We might try to understand these parents’ fears about their community and their children. But we cannot ignore the blatant racism of a statement like this one, nor can we ignore its familiarity today. When Bennett, Tucker and other cultural conservatives call for a corporate ban on explicit rap music they place themselves within a repulsive tradition that is more about racial and class anxieties than it is about music and dirty words. If they detest racism, perhaps they should take some time to examine their own cause and its history. If they really dislike vulgarity, they should refrain from using it. And if they abhor the very real violence that plagues many communities of all colors, perhaps they should spend their money lobbying weapons companies to ban guns.

BEN KAFKA

San Diego