VIDEO: Azealia Banks Opens Up w/ Renada Romain, Talks Misunderstandings.

[uo111 5,201]

That interviewer was all about her but when she started talking about reparations I feel like even the interviewer was like "really girl? really?"

[Willy Wonka 4]

That interviewer was all about her but when she started talking about reparations I feel like even the interviewer was like "really girl? really?"

I don't understand why reparations are such a crazy request.

[uo111 5,201]

I don't understand why reparations are such a crazy request.

Reparations are already happening in many ways. Based in part on merit or need in addition to race. But she specifically mentioned that's not what she is talking about. To her it's crazy that someone getting a free education should have to prove their merit, and they should get a free education just because they are black.

 

That's why it's a crazy request.

[brownie 5]

She's not misunderstood at all: she makes good music but has a horrible attitude. That's it.

[aaronyoji 2,007]

It's crazy, as an Europeen, I can't anderstand her point of view about white/black people. It sounds SO racist to me 

 

She seems to believe that my color defines who I am... My brain just can't accept that xD

thats because youre probably white and you've never experienced what its like to get the backhand of society simply for your color. but see, someone like azealia, a black woman in america, she's never been able to escape from being black, and that's what the interview mentioned about "the black experience". white people dont like the idea of being defined by race but thats because they've never had to worry about it, they just say that to avoid feeling uncomfortable or having an awareness of their privilege. 

She's talking about doing what Oprah literally did in the real world. She opened up a school for black girls in Africa, to give them a fighting chance, to give those who families cant afford school otherwise a place to receive an education.

 

Its a hard thing to grasp, when it isn't your reality. 

:applause:

[Jamie 608]

thats because youre probably white and you've never experienced what its like to get the backhand of society simply for your color. but see, someone like azealia, a black woman in america, she's never been able to escape from being black, and that's what the interview mentioned about "the black experience". white people dont like the idea of being defined by race but thats because they've never had to worry about it, they just say that to avoid feeling uncomfortable or having an awareness of their privilege. 

 

I don't think it's because I'm white =) I think it's because I was never raised in America and I can't understand the strong feeling of community there. ( I think communotarism is the main reason eurpeans and americans have different POV on races ) 

 

In france, if you talk about race and different colors, I think people are gonna make fun of you. Because it's an old debate and it's simplist. (from our perspective). Of course we have racism issues, but the origin or the religion will be discussed, not the color xD

[StrawberryBlond 13,262]

She's talking about doing what Oprah literally did in the real world. She opened up a school for black girls in Africa, to give them a fighting chance, to give those who families cant afford school otherwise a place to receive an education.

 

Its a hard thing to grasp, when it isn't your reality. 

 

That's different. Oprah was building schools for blacks in Africa. Azealia's talking about building schools for blacks in America (that's definitely what she means - she says she wants somewhere that she can educate her kids and nephew). There is a massive difference between education in Africa and America. Most African schools are fee paying and no matter how small that is, a lot of families can't afford it so their kids can't attend school at all. In America, all schools are free except private ones. In African schools, they just learn the bare basics. In American schools, you learn a huge variety of subjects. In Africa, even those who go to school might not get to university or even get a good job. In America, if you graduate high school, your chance of getting into higher education is practically a given. The opportunites couldn't be more different, so to say America needs black schools...wake up and smell the coffee. Blacks have so many opportunities in America, they just think they don't. Work hard at school, pass your exams, graduate and you get a university place. That's how it works. Of course, it's harder when you have a difficult life at home, but that's a problem that all races face, not just blacks. She's acting as if blacks are the only disadvantaged group in society, that being black is the sole reason behind being poor, that black kids aren't getting into university because of their race. It's ridiculous. The main two reasons for failing to get into higher education are: not passing with high enough grades and/or not being able to affort the fees. And that is something that happens to ALL races. Why on earth does she think this is solely a black problem and that the problem is linked to race?

 

And don't try that "it's hard to understand when it's not your reality." Not only have I witnessed some of the problems that Azealia's talking about (though not racially), but I research anything I don't have direct experience with. My school was 99% white and so many students didn't stay on after the age of 16 because they needed to start earning money to get by in life (a good percentage of them were working class) and staying on at school provided nothing. My white friend had to go to college first (college and university are two different things in the UK - university is higher and you can get into college on lower qualifications) and work her way up to university because her grades weren't good enough to go straight there. Almost every student in my university (maybe a good 75% white) had to get grants or take out loans if they weren't living with their parents (and even then, some still had to). So, for Azealia to moan about how she would struggle to get into university because she's black and how she has to get a scholarship and a grant...it's so ignorant. Hundreds of thousands of white people are suffering these exact same problems (except the race angle, obviously, but even that's a ridiculous myth).

 

 

In what way are reparations "validation"? And if you go back to her original comments about it, she specifically wants reparations taken from families and companies who benefitted from slave trading and slave labor. 

And about the black schools, you have to contextualize it within her original argument once again. She said that the white-centric American school system lowers the self-esteem of black kids. Basically, she takes issue with the fact that black people were forcibly divorced from their history, culture, religion, and language and forced to assimilate. It was never about "segregation" in the sense of contamination like we often think of. It's about a different type of school that would actually recognize and acknowledge the achievements and contributions of Africans, both in America and around the world.  It's very much a black nationalist perspective, or at the very least, afrocentric. Not necessarily "outdated", just radical.

I don't agree with it, but I can appreciate it and appreciate black radicalism.

 

White people giving black people money to make up for atrocities in the past sounds like validation to me. It doesn't matter where the reparations are coming from either.

Thing is, things like Black History Week is an American thing. It's something that me, as a Brit, can't really get my head around. In our schools, we learn about all things but we don't feel the need to bring up what certain races did. Even in schools in areas of the country where there's a high population of black kids, there is no focus on race in education. Not because we're racist, but because we don't see it as strictly necessary to the learning experience. We teach that racism is bad. What more needs to be taught? Things like tracing your family ancestry and learning about the history of your people is a hobby, not crucial. A lot of white people don't know about their own family history or general history either. Making everyone mix isn't about stripping away people's identities, it's about forming a level of common identity, so we can all get along. If we concentrate too much on what makes us different, we risk creating tension. Blacks are far from the only ones who experience feelings of being different to everyone else in school. Those with disabilities, mental disorders, a different s-xuality, all feel different too. Why don't they get special weeks devoted to them in school? As I said before, they have more opportunities than they think. They're only under the illusion that they're at a disadvantage in school due to their race.

 

I don't understand why reparations are such a crazy request.

 

Because the country's already taxed enough as it is, the people that'll have to pay for this weren't even involved in slavery, the people who would have really benefitted from reparations are dead now, it's hard to work out where to draw the line on who deserves reparations, it's a crude concept that suggests money can make everything better, it's a overall patronising concept that paints all non-whites as charity cases...I could go on. Watch this video if you want a detailed a--lysis:

 

http://youtu.be/KV-iJrb1PUI

[Hexxx 2,244]

:toofunga:

[inuborg 4,134]

That's different. Oprah was building schools for blacks in Africa. Azealia's talking about building schools for blacks in America (that's definitely what she means - she says she wants somewhere that she can educate her kids and nephew). There is a massive difference between education in Africa and America. Most African schools are fee paying and no matter how small that is, a lot of families can't afford it so their kids can't attend school at all. In America, all schools are free except private ones. In African schools, they just learn the bare basics. In American schools, you learn a huge variety of subjects. In Africa, even those who go to school might not get to university or even get a good job. In America, if you graduate high school, your chance of getting into higher education is practically a given. The opportunites couldn't be more different, so to say America needs black schools...wake up and smell the coffee. Blacks have so many opportunities in America, they just think they don't. Work hard at school, pass your exams, graduate and you get a university place. That's how it works. Of course, it's harder when you have a difficult life at home, but that's a problem that all races face, not just blacks. She's acting as if blacks are the only disadvantaged group in society, that being black is the sole reason behind being poor, that black kids aren't getting into university because of their race. It's ridiculous. The main two reasons for failing to get into higher education are: not passing with high enough grades and/or not being able to affort the fees. And that is something that happens to ALL races. Why on earth does she think this is solely a black problem and that the problem is linked to race?

 

And don't try that "it's hard to understand when it's not your reality." Not only have I witnessed some of the problems that Azealia's talking about (though not racially), but I research anything I don't have direct experience with. My school was 99% white and so many students didn't stay on after the age of 16 because they needed to start earning money to get by in life (a good percentage of them were working class) and staying on at school provided nothing. My white friend had to go to college first (college and university are two different things in the UK - university is higher and you can get into college on lower qualifications) and work her way up to university because her grades weren't good enough to go straight there. Almost every student in my university (maybe a good 75% white) had to get grants or take out loans if they weren't living with their parents (and even then, some still had to). So, for Azealia to moan about how she would struggle to get into university because she's black and how she has to get a scholarship and a grant...it's so ignorant. Hundreds of thousands of white people are suffering these exact same problems (except the race angle, obviously, but even that's a ridiculous myth).

 

 

 

White people giving black people money to make up for atrocities in the past sounds like validation to me. It doesn't matter where the reparations are coming from either.

Thing is, things like Black History Week is an American thing. It's something that me, as a Brit, can't really get my head around. In our schools, we learn about all things but we don't feel the need to bring up what certain races did. Even in schools in areas of the country where there's a high population of black kids, there is no focus on race in education. Not because we're racist, but because we don't see it as strictly necessary to the learning experience. We teach that racism is bad. What more needs to be taught? Things like tracing your family ancestry and learning about the history of your people is a hobby, not crucial. A lot of white people don't know about their own family history or general history either. Making everyone mix isn't about stripping away people's identities, it's about forming a level of common identity, so we can all get along. If we concentrate too much on what makes us different, we risk creating tension. Blacks are far from the only ones who experience feelings of being different to everyone else in school. Those with disabilities, mental disorders, a different s-xuality, all feel different too. Why don't they get special weeks devoted to them in school? As I said before, they have more opportunities than they think. They're only under the illusion that they're at a disadvantage in school due to their race.

 

 

Because the country's already taxed enough as it is, the people that'll have to pay for this weren't even involved in slavery, the people who would have really benefitted from reparations are dead now, it's hard to work out where to draw the line on who deserves reparations, it's a crude concept that suggests money can make everything better, it's a overall patronising concept that paints all non-whites as charity cases...I could go on. Watch this video if you want a detailed a--lysis:

 

http://youtu.be/KV-iJrb1PUI

I can tell you from first hand experience, thats not true

 

If Azealia thinks the best thing for her race in her country is to be able to build free schools for them, so be it. I don't think see how this seems like such a ridiculous idea. She never anything about just letting anyone and everyone in, and besides its just a concept. A concept a 23 year old who is learning about the world came up with. Azealia is barely 2 years older than me, barely older than anyone else on this forum and yet every one expects her to have all the answers and have such a clear cut, practical, and logical way of thinking. 

[Willy Wonka 4]

 

Thing is, things like Black History Week is an American thing. It's something that me, as a Brit, can't really get my head around. In our schools, we learn about all things but we don't feel the need to bring up what certain races did. Even in schools in areas of the country where there's a high population of black kids, there is no focus on race in education. Not because we're racist, but because we don't see it as strictly necessary to the learning experience. We teach that racism is bad. What more needs to be taught? Things like tracing your family ancestry and learning about the history of your people is a hobby, not crucial. A lot of white people don't know about their own family history or general history either. Making everyone mix isn't about stripping away people's identities, it's about forming a level of common identity, so we can all get along. If we concentrate too much on what makes us different, we risk creating tension. Blacks are far from the only ones who experience feelings of being different to everyone else in school. Those with disabilities, mental disorders, a different s-xuality, all feel different too. Why don't they get special weeks devoted to them in school? As I said before, they have more opportunities than they think. They're only under the illusion that they're at a disadvantage in school due to their race.

StrawberryBlond, with all due respect, you don't understand what you're talking about and because of that, you're misinterpreting what she's saying and what I'm saying.

 

You're assuming your school experience is similar to that of an American. The reason Black History Month exists is because, in America, black history is paid dust the rest of the time. I'm sure you've heard people say "Well why isn't there a White History Month?" The joke is that every month is white history month. The only things worth discussing are things done by white men. The school system whitewashes history to emphasize the greatness of the white man and trivializes and ignores the accomplishments and contributions of people of color. It demonizes them a majority of the time too. There's literally a special month so that hopefully students can realize that black people did stuff too. It's not that education should cater to the race of the students, but rather that the current education system is promoting an inaccurate view of history that basically asserts white men are the only people who did important things. And furthermore, it sugarcoats the reality of the civil rights movement. We literally learned that MLK said that people should respond with civil disobedience and everyone agreed and the government loved him and racism was ended. The reality is that the CIA labelled him the "most dangerous Negro in America" and literally tried to take him down and spread rumors to try to ruin his marriage. They hated him and wanted him killed. The Black Panthers are still talked about as a terrorist group, and COINTELPRO, the CIA program to spread misinformation about the Black Panthers and take down leaders is never even mentioned. This is a reality in America, and it's still relevant today. There are school districts in the US who even want to remove sections in history textbooks on the civil rights movement and the treatment of Native Americans because they think it fosters an "anti-American perspective" in students. History classes in America don't tell the truth. 

 

Furthermore, literally every study shows that, on average, black people in America have less opportunities and are less privileged and are treated worse. Pretending that that's not reality does not help anyone.

 

Do your research before making uninformed statements:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/1998/03/spring-education-darling-hammond

http://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-070924discipline-story.html#page=2

http://www.dcsig.org/files/AddressingOverrepresentationAfricanAmericanguide.pdf

[MahoganySnitch 67]

StrawberryBlond, with all due respect, you don't understand what you're talking about and because of that, you're misinterpreting what she's saying and what I'm saying.

 

You're assuming your school experience is similar to that of an American. The reason Black History Month exists is because, in America, black history is paid dust the rest of the time. I'm sure you've heard people say "Well why isn't there a White History Month?" The joke is that every month is white history month. The only things worth discussing are things done by white men. The school system whitewashes history to emphasize the greatness of the white man and trivializes and ignores the accomplishments and contributions of people of color. It demonizes them a majority of the time too. There's literally a special month so that hopefully students can realize that black people did stuff too. It's not that education should cater to the race of the students, but rather that the current education system is promoting an inaccurate view of history that basically asserts white men are the only people who did important things. And furthermore, it sugarcoats the reality of the civil rights movement. We literally learned that MLK said that people should respond with civil disobedience and everyone agreed and the government loved him and racism was ended. The reality is that the CIA labelled him the "most dangerous Negro in America" and literally tried to take him down and spread rumors to try to ruin his marriage. They hated him and wanted him killed. The Black Panthers are still talked about as a terrorist group, and COINTELPRO, the CIA program to spread misinformation about the Black Panthers and take down leaders is never even mentioned. This is a reality in America, and it's still relevant today. There are school districts in the US who even want to remove sections in history textbooks on the civil rights movement and the treatment of Native Americans because they think it fosters an "anti-American perspective" in students. History classes in America don't tell the truth. 

 

Furthermore, literally every study shows that, on average, black people in America have less opportunities and are less privileged and are treated worse. Pretending that that's not reality does not help anyone.

 

Do your research before making uninformed statements:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/1998/03/spring-education-darling-hammond

http://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-070924discipline-story.html#page=2

http://www.dcsig.org/files/AddressingOverrepresentationAfricanAmericanguide.pdf

The fact that that the 1st bolded part is brought up makes me LOL. 

 

And I agree with bolded part 2: He was definitely considered a radical by some. So much so it killed him. 

 

And bolded part #3 is just ... 

[Whispering 18,865]

She's talking about doing what Oprah literally did in the real world. She opened up a school for black girls in Africa, to give them a fighting chance, to give those who families cant afford school otherwise a place to receive an education.

Its a hard thing to grasp, when it isn't your reality.

In Africa, those girls wouldn't have had the opportunity to go to school. In the US, every child has access to an education from kindergarten through the 12th grade. (and in some states, many children are eligible for head start)

If AB wants to help, why doesn't she take it upon herself to do so...instead of just complaining on Twitter and in interviews? Supposedly, she is a multi-millionaire....so, doesn't she take some of that money and establish a few scholarships for kids that would struggle to go to college? She could pay for a lot of summer camp experiences for kids who would never have that opportunity. She could donate her time at a community theatre, since she participated in musical theatre in high school.

Instead of sitting around on Twitter, complaining about what the government isn't doing, why doesn't she use some of her millions to give back to her community. It may not be close to what Oprah is able to do with her wealth, but every little bit helps. If AB wants things to change, it can start with her!

[StrawberryBlond 13,262]

I can tell you from first hand experience, thats not true

 

If Azealia thinks the best thing for her race in her country is to be able to build free schools for them, so be it. I don't think see how this seems like such a ridiculous idea. She never anything about just letting anyone and everyone in, and besides its just a concept. A concept a 23 year old who is learning about the world came up with. Azealia is barely 2 years older than me, barely older than anyone else on this forum and yet every one expects her to have all the answers and have such a clear cut, practical, and logical way of thinking. 

 

I was meaning more in a sense of "you may not get the university that you want, but somewhere will accept you." Obviously, America has a huge population and not enough university places to go round, but that's the problem, not race.

 

There's already too much segregation with education - we don't need any more. We need to stop putting people in different schools for being different to everyone else. How will we be tolerant that way? Having schools for just one race suggests that life is going to be segregationalist. That doesn't prepare kids for when they leave and will only make them less likely to mix with people of other races. I'm not suggesting that Azealia should have all the answers, but she's got to keep certain ridiculous ones under wraps. I've got the feeling she just gives voice to every single random thought in her head without processing if it's actually a good idea first or not.

 

StrawberryBlond, with all due respect, you don't understand what you're talking about and because of that, you're misinterpreting what she's saying and what I'm saying.

 

You're assuming your school experience is similar to that of an American. The reason Black History Month exists is because, in America, black history is paid dust the rest of the time. I'm sure you've heard people say "Well why isn't there a White History Month?" The joke is that every month is white history month. The only things worth discussing are things done by white men. The school system whitewashes history to emphasize the greatness of the white man and trivializes and ignores the accomplishments and contributions of people of color. It demonizes them a majority of the time too. There's literally a special month so that hopefully students can realize that black people did stuff too. It's not that education should cater to the race of the students, but rather that the current education system is promoting an inaccurate view of history that basically asserts white men are the only people who did important things. And furthermore, it sugarcoats the reality of the civil rights movement. We literally learned that MLK said that people should respond with civil disobedience and everyone agreed and the government loved him and racism was ended. The reality is that the CIA labelled him the "most dangerous Negro in America" and literally tried to take him down and spread rumors to try to ruin his marriage. They hated him and wanted him killed. The Black Panthers are still talked about as a terrorist group, and COINTELPRO, the CIA program to spread misinformation about the Black Panthers and take down leaders is never even mentioned. This is a reality in America, and it's still relevant today. There are school districts in the US who even want to remove sections in history textbooks on the civil rights movement and the treatment of Native Americans because they think it fosters an "anti-American perspective" in students. History classes in America don't tell the truth. 

 

Furthermore, literally every study shows that, on average, black people in America have less opportunities and are less privileged and are treated worse. Pretending that that's not reality does not help anyone.

 

Do your research before making uninformed statements:

http://www.brookings.edu/research/articles/1998/03/spring-education-darling-hammond

http://www.chicagotribune.com/chi-070924discipline-story.html#page=2

http://www.dcsig.org/files/AddressingOverrepresentationAfricanAmericanguide.pdf

 

To be honest, I could have worded some of that differently. I know exactly what she's saying, it's just that I come from somewhere where personal history doesn't matter all that much. Most of the people in my school didn't have a clue about their family history and they didn't care, either. Neither did they have a working knowledge of their own country's history, and again, they didn't care. So, I'm struggling to understand why black kids feel the need to know both these things. That the reason they're not doing well in school is because they don't seem to have an identity. It all seems absurd to me. There are many reasons for bad school performance (some I've experienced, some others have experienced) and I've never heard anything about the reasoning for it being that the education system didn't speak to "my people." Also, not every student takes history as a subject, so whatever's discussed in history class won't affect certain people anyway. I think the media is always trying to dream up reasons for why kids aren't passing tests or wanting to do well in school. They never question the actual way of teaching and think if it's not taught in school, kids will never learn about it. Also, why can't parents teach their kids more about the history of their people, if they feel the school doesn't provide it?

 

What bugs me is that when you're white and you're poor, you have to face up to the reality of why (coming from generations of under-class and poor life decisions) but when you're black and you're poor, you can just blame it all on your race and have done with it. Because you descended from slaves, that's why you have no money now. It's so oversimplified and means that you won't know how to help yourself and break the cycle. Poor people in general have a lack of opportunities, not just blacks. We need to stop thinking that this is a problem exclusive to blacks. Azealia talks as if taking a job at Starbucks to pay your way through university is some big injustice that only black people have to endure. In reality, most people have to get a job to pay their way through education and some of it is work that would make Starbucks look glamorous. I knew a girl in university who got up at 8am to clean toilets to pay her way. But because she was white, she couldn't moan about how the system keeps her down. We're ALL part of the system. The government screws us ALL over.