Traditionally Speaking

I watched the saddest thing.

I watched a documentary called Daughter from Danang.

This documentary follows an adopted American woman — one of thousands of Vietnamese children who were separated from their families and flown to America in 1975 — who gets more than she bargained for when she’s reunited with her birth mother. The film emphasizes how much culture, rather than innate physical characteristics, can shape an individual. Winner of the Grand Jury Prize for Best Documentary at the 2002 Sundance Film Festival.

Here is the website for those of you interested.

If you plan on watching it, then come back after you do cause I’m going to talk about it.

I love documentaries. My netflix account is probably 40% documentaries. I guess this one caught my eye because of the assimilation factor. I am always interested in other cultures that live in the U.S. I like to see how they keep their culture going once here, or not.

I learnt from this documentary that there was some gangsta stuff going on and such a thing called “Operation Babylift”, a Ford administration plan to relocate orphans and mixed-race children to the U.S. for adoption before they fell victim to a frighteningly uncertain future in Vietnam after the Americans pulled out.

Read all about it.

There were some gangsta social workers going around telling these poor mothers that their babaies would be killed if they didn’t give them to the U.S.! There is a scene where one mother says NO and the social worker goes on and on about how great the childs life will be in the U.S. And when the babies land at the airport, all these people are waiting for their babies! Lord Jesus!!!

This chick in the documentary looks nothing like she’s half Vietnamese. I know her father was American but damn, nothing at all. And she was raised in the South (TN) so she looked and talked just like any other dark haired southern lady.

Anteeywho (that was Madea coming out) mother and daughter are reunited after 22 years and it starts out roses but quickly smells like poo poo poo.

The main reason is tradition. In Vietnam, it is tradition for the one who is able in the family to support the others financially. American chick takes offense to this right away cause after all, all she wanted was to reunite with her mother. They (her siblings) ask her if she can move their mother to the U.S. and if not, could she send a monthly stipend. Honey cries herself a river and cannot, willnot believe that these people have the audacity to ask her such a thing.

I understand that I am looking at this from a very different stand point. I am so grateful that I spent very important years of my development in my home country so I know of these traditions. This southern belle in the documentary is proud to be southern and is happy only knowing her way of life.

It is not uncommon in other parts of the world, my country included that financial support is given to family members. It is a thin line and I guess you have to be there. We used to get visitors at 4 am that had drove all the way from the village or Malawi and my mother didn’t think twice about cooking a full meal at 4 am for our guests. You could not show up unannounced in the U.S of A in this day and age and expect the doors to be opened and a cooked meal.

There comes a time in a child’s life in my tradition when you realize that roles have changed and you have to send your parents money and do things for your parents that you never expected. NOt so much here. I have seen parents ask for money here and be flat out told NO by their kids (grown kids). I’m amazed by it each time. Just last week, my parents who both work needed money and all 4 of us were at Western Union/Money Gram in 2 seconds flat. All I sent was $50 but it was money.

It is disheartening to watch grown ass children living in their big houses and driving their expensive cars only give their parents birthday and christmas presents. Where I’m from your parents become a part of bills. Lights, check. Cable, check. Groceries, check. Mom & Dad, check. Simple.

Because her Vietnamese family asked her for money, southern belle was overwhelmed and disheartened. She didn’t even want to have nothing to do with them no more. I would understand if she had not visited, but she was there and saw what they needed. And she knew for damn sure that money spent on a happy meal here would do way more for her people there. I’m sure if she sent $20 a month, they would be happy.

Don’t get me wrong….just as I know that there are happy negroes, there are happy Africans and happy Vietnamese as well. I knew some people whose Mama demanded $1000 a month to be sent home! Uh huh. Pure exploitation if you ask me. There are relatives you can send Pay-less shoes to and the happy ones that demand Gucci. Uh huh.

I bring all of this up because it is sooooo important for Americans who adopt from other countries to fully know these cultures from which they bring their adopted children. Yeah you can give them private school and a car when they turn 16 and all that jazz BUT chances are that one day they’ll be curious to know where they are from and possibly want to visit. If you told them not one thing about where they were from and who they are, how do you think they will react to no plumbling and running water? Will they appreciate how their people live and be happy simply to be in their presence or will they turn their noses at a culture that birthed them?

Think about it.

Verbal Lashing, Chuck D style!

Of course, reality TV is not reality at all. It’s shot, canned, edited, and processed Amerikkkan style—like Mickey Ds, over 99 billion served and told. In a land where a village idiot reigns at the top, it’s no surprise that many citizens would be reduced to “vidiots.” Anti-lectualism and mass dumbass-ification across five hundred channels is candied stress relief from the rigors of reality.

The public should know that Flavor Flav’s Flavor Of Love and other reality shows are shot approximately five months beforehand within a 23-day span, so how stupid is it when people wait week by week to find out something that happened almost half a year before?

Television is considered the most powerful weapon/tool created to inflict influence. That power, as far as black folk is concerned, is like a snapshot of a gathering. If you were in that gathering and the snapshot was passed around, the first person you look for is yourself. This is the basic reason black folks flock to the tube.

At the same time, black women’s images have never been so low. (A shameless plug here: all-female rap group Crew Grrl Order’s debut on my SLAMjamz label [slamjamz.com]; it’ll be interesting to see the support for these women’s recordings by the mega conglomerates come this October 2006.) What’s more disturbing is that Christina Norman of MTV Networks, Debra L. Lee of BET, and Cathy Hughes of Radio One are all black women and presidents of the most powerful portals of culture [and] image portrayals that millions of black folk visit daily.

This brings me [back] to Flav’s scenario. When I pulled Flavor Flav up twenty-five years ago, Public Enemy was a varied, diversified collection of personalities, just as was our Long Island neighborhood. Flav was Skittles and Starburst to [former PE member] Professor Griff’s okra and beets—and Flav’s that same cat today.

You must understand, [Public Enemy producer] Hank Shocklee and myself formed a noisy rap vehicle in terms of words and sonic assault. PE was to destroy music, as we knew it, because it was elitist from a position of black complacency. But somehow, along the way, black life and culture [has been] deemed profitable, and the big, great, white male took interest. “Niggativity,” which was a minority element in the ’hood, has had its DNA corporately extracted. This created the climate for Flavor Of Love. This is called diminishing returns.

The truth is, black men (whether lawyer, comedian, militant, athlete, mechanic, drug dealer, drug addict, soldier, academic cat, thug, etc.) are still grouped into one cookie-cutter category. Class clowns and thugs are cosigned, socially applauded, and rewarded, while teachers and valedictorians are clowned.

I’m glad Flav is busy, really not surprised at all (I’ve been traveling and living with dude all over the earth 25 years, people—56 countries, 54 tours…hello!!! Why would I be surprised?). Personally, I thought Flavor was the smartest cat in the room on The Surreal Life 3, and he showed the heart he had in Strange Love (Although I interjected when I heard a conflict was shot between him and his ex, and I threatened VH1 and the production company [that] if they aired it, we’d have problems. They were calling the conflict “good TV”…shit.…) Viacom, which owns MTV, BET, VH1 (Flavor Of Love’s television home), and reality shows are inseparable. The Real World jumped it off in the early ’90s. [So] when Flav told me he was doing a Flavor version of The Bachelor, I just laughed and wished him luck.

Flavor Flav is addicted to fame. When he has had run-ins with the law and some substance cases, that’s been when his fame was on the low. We always knew that Flav would be the loudest in any room. In a twisted way, perhaps he was an asteroid smash-landed to possibly change the terrain of imagery and wake some people up. Perhaps Flavor Flav is an introduction to black folks killing off the nigger in us. But it’s a double wince at times when the stats say that Flavor Of Love is a well-watched program by the masses of black folk and the topic the next day among our people at school and work.

This just in…the rest of PE continues to contribute socially, both nationally and abroad. We’re balanced as a structure and expect no coverage or publicity campaign costing $6K a month. I don’t do reality TV and won’t bend for it. Among many things, I’ve been on the Air America Radio network for the past year with a black woman cohost, Gia’na Garel, boosting social-cultural-political opinions nationally and abroad. We expect a minority of listeners, but also I realize the glaring fact that if I’d merely robbed a gas station, I wouldn’t need a publicist.

So I would like this to be read and thoroughly comprehended. [But] if it’s fulla shit and too deep, then there you have it. I’m glad you’ve made it this far. Don’t expect some reality show nearest you.

- Chuck D -

*************************************

Bam! In your face TRUTH.

There was a time when I refused to laugh at anyone else’s expense. I refused to watch Entertainment News shows and read gossip blogs. It was as if an invisible protective shield surrounded me and let negativity in any form bounce off me. Something happened and of course now I watch dumbness and know more useless trivia than the average person. *shrug*. I am not proud of this but Lord knows I needed to LAUGH and watching mindless entertainment was the quickest cure.

Chuck D is right. We have to see these shows for what they are - PURE ENTERTAINMENT. Sure I sit on couch and watch BUT you have to know that there is nothing real about any of it. As soon as these contestants leave these reality shows they are quick to let the world know how shit really happened and how they were edited to look the fool.

Lets face it, someone falling over drunk makes good tv.

And there is a reality tv formula….contestants know how to get more camera time. Usually the more obnoxious and bigger than life you are, the more people will talk about you. These contestants forget that the 3 minutes of obnoxious behavior presented to the masses have life long effects. 20 years from now Somethin’s children will be teased over her smelly accident.

Watching real reality is painful and boring.

Watching House of Carters is painful but it is the truth. This is real life. People have shitty parents and siblings fight and try to find their way. If it was for tv then they would have their Mom & Dad on there acting like good parents.

Watching Keyshia Cole’s show was painful but it was the truth. Going to prison to visit her mother and having the family (mother and daughters) have a heart to heart was truth. If it was for tv then a casting call would have gone out for a Claire Huxtable type to play Keyshia’s mother and look like she had a perfect life.

Watching Intervention is painful but it is the truth. Family members do lie and steal to get high.

Reality tv is going nowhere. Everyday a show is being pitched somewhere and we eat it up BUT we gotta take it for what it is. We CANNOT believe that love is found on a tv set..it is a fantasy complete with mansions, chauffuers and all that. None of the Bachelors ever got married and yet the show goes on and people continue to tune in.

Oh and about that invisible protective shield….I am beginning to long for it again and that is a wonderful sign. I feel myself wanting to look inward once more and find all my laughter there.

Life…it is a beautiful thing.