There is political opportunism, scapegoating, and
desperation, but Toronto Liberal MP Dan McTeague has raised (or
rather lowered) the bar with his suggestion that Immigration Minister
Joe Volpe ban New York-based rapper 50 Cent from entry into Canada
for a series of concerts beginning in December. What is equally
surprising is that Toronto’s "leftist" mayor David Miller
endorses such a reactionary move.
This speaks to several issues, but first and foremost the dismal
failure of publicly elected officials to adequately deal with gun
violence and the associated socio-economic problems that continue
to plague our communities.
The
first question is: why 50 Cent? Is it because 50 Cent is one of
the most successful rappers of the moment, with an empire that extends
beyond music and into apparel, nutrition, telecommunications and
movie productions? Surely, calling "Fiddy" out through
the media would garner Mr. McTeague a few headlines and a few conservative
friends as we near federal elections.
Gun violence in Toronto affects a proportionately high number of
African-Canadian youth. Conversely, consumers of rap music are a
proportionately high number of white youth. To try and make the
linkages as Mr. McTeague attempts to do is not only completely illogical
and nonsensical, but outright racist.
Furthermore, where would public officials draw the
line? Would they stop at 50 Cent, or proceed to other rappers as
well? Why doesn’t McTeague just call for a ban on the genre of rap
music altogether considering its tendencies to glorify violence,
misogyny, sexism, and crime?
And just where was Mr. McTeague and the critics when Fiddy was filming
his biography in Toronto this past year with Sopranos producer Jim
Sheridan? It appears that the revenue that the production garnered
for "Hollywood North" rendered the likes of McTeague silent
as church mice.
It is a matter of public knowledge that the recent spate of gun
violence is linked to the drug trade industry. Since Mr. Fiddy makes
no bones about his entrepreneurial past and the associated violence
of the "trade," he is said to promote the said industry.
However, no one has similarly concluded that since Keith Richards
of the Rolling Stones (or is it Rolling Papers) was busted on a
heroin sting in Toronto, there should be an immigration order taken
out to ban him from Canada. In fact, the Canadian government shelled
out millions of tax dollars to pay the Rolling Stones to play at
Downsview Park for a SARS benefit with not much as a whimper from
the likes of Dan McTeague. Two different standards; draw your own
conclusions.
Furthermore, if McTeague is vehemently opposed to
the genre of "gansta-rap," then he should be equally and
publicly vocal on the gangster tendencies of his own political party,
since exposed for their corruption through the "Sponsorship
scandal." Mr. McTeague would be tickled to find out that there
are more similarities between Fiddy’s "Get Rich or Die Tryin"
mantra and his homies up on Parliament Hill.
Now that the manure has hit the fan with respect to gun violence,
what we need are concrete solutions and not knee-jerk reactions
from public officials.
Artists from Elvis Presley and James Dean to Tupac
Shakur and Snoop Dogg have been blamed, usually by old white men
steeped in their Christian Puritanism, for all the societal ills
resulting from the values that they promote. That is the easy way
out. However, it is far more constructive to be critical of the
larger society because they have the means to imbue us with the
values of the dominant ideology. It is at this doorstep that old
white men decide on what artist to sign, what artists to promote,
what movies to make, and what wars to fight.
Mesfin Aman is a broadcaster in Toronto, Canada. He can be
contacted at [email protected]. |