Stare in the Darkness: The Limits of Hip-hop and Black Politics

Rap’s critique of police brutality in the 1980s. The Hip Hop Political Convention. The rise (and fall) of Kwame Kilpatrick, the “hip—hop mayor” of Detroit. Barack Obama echoing the body language of Jay—Z on the campaign trail.

A growing number of black activists and artists claim that rap and hip—hop are the basis of an influential new urban social movement. Simultaneously, black citizens evince concern with the effect that rap and hip—hop culture exerts on African American communities. Acc...