Author: Karim Panni
Published: December 31, 1969
Tool: [ email ]
We all have heard of the recent shootings that took place in Pioneer
Square on the night of September 22nd. According to inaccurate media
reports, up to five people were shot and two dead. The covers of
several prominent Seattle newspapers reported on the incident with
words like," Four People Shot In Pioneer Square - Hip-Hop To
Blame."
These stories go on to stating quotes from non-qualified club owners
and patrons who are speaking of a culture they know little or nothing
about.
On Saturday, September 30th, members of Darkside Productions, Jasiri
Media Group, L Brothers Entertainment, and Pak Pros will be staging a
rally/press conference in the heart of downtown in the Westlake
Center. We are rallying for one common goal, to clear hip-hop's
tarnished name. We are inviting all media, members of the police
force, politicians (including our fine mayor Schell), and most
importantly members of the local hip-hop and music culture and
community. We are more than qualified to stage such an event. We
represent the promoters and performers in the city of Seattle. Our
voice must be heard.
There are facts in this case that cannot go unnoticed. For one, the
Bohemian wasn't even playing hip-hop music on the night of the
incident. Eyewitnesses say there were only three people shot, and no
one died. Neighboring club owners blame hip-hop for the violence, but
have never had hip-hop in their venues. We feel the bottom line here
is racism - racism by the police, media, and the mayor. Racism by
neighboring club owners and promoters. Pioneer Square is not the
golden entrance to Seattle. It is Skid Row. You can easily buy crack
or heroine in Pioneer Square, on any night of the week. I don't
care
if country music and punk rock is playing at every club in the
square, drugs will be available. Where you have drugs you have thugs
and gangs, and that's the politics of Pioneer Square. According
to
eyewitnesses, the individuals involved in the shooting never even
stepped into the Bohemian Club that night. The violence took part in
the parking lot around the corner!
The facts in the case and media inaccuracies don't bother me half
as
much as the mayor and his comments, and the reports that ran on
evening news and in local newspapers, degrading hip-hop and the
people involved in the culture. Funny isn't it, the fact that two
successful, sold-out shows took place at the Showbox the same
Thursday and Friday night, incident free. No shootings, no gang
colors, no fistfights! I ask the local media, do you know the
difference between Master P and Jurassic 5? Do you know the
difference between Jay Z and Pharoahe Monch? Do you know the
difference between Common and Ice Cube? Obviously not. We've had
an
impossible time getting these same mediums, newspaper and television,
to cover our shows when we have them. Now, the only time you hear
about hip-hop in the news or paper is when an unfortunate incident
like this goes down, and hip-hop has actually nothing to do with it.
The real problem is the liquor and drugs, which, at crowded clubs,
can always spell trouble. There are always bad apples in a crowd that
get too drunk and want to start fights, for no reason. These unruly
patrons didn't hear a Puffy song in the club, get rowdy, and come
out
to fight. They drank one too many Hennessy's, had someone
accidentally step on their new Nike Air Presto's, and took it
outside
and started brawling. This isn't hip-hop's fault.
Our fine mayor recently retracted his statement that hip-hop was to
blame for this and other violent incidents at clubs, but the damage
has been done, and we're here to try to repair it. Our open forum
will include a panel discussion with local media and politicians, an
official press conference, live hip-hop performances, giveaways,
DJ's, and much more. This is the perfect event for us, the
Seattle
hip-hop heads, to get unified. Where MC Joe Backpack can sit and
converse with MC Gangsta Loc. We can all share our frustrations with
one another, and figure out what we need to do as a collective to
combat the negative stereotypes that the media and local politicians
have placed upon us. We can break it down to the root of the problem,
with all the so-called "leaders" of the local hip-hop
community, and
come to a conclusion.
There are many things wrong in our local hip-hop community that are
holding us back as a unit, and causing the scene as a whole not to
blow up. We cannot have all-ages shows at night, after 10pm. The fine
line between reality rap groups and underground hip-hop groups is
huge, and there is little or no communication between groups.
I'll
use myself as an example - in the past, I'd never collaborate on
a
track with, say, Silver Shadow D or the Full Time Soldiers. There
would not even be any communication. This is not because I don't
like
these people, this is not because I don't like these people's
music,
this is because we've been living in two different worlds.
References
and contacts which could've benefited both sides have never been
shared. Now this is only an example, peace to Silver Shadow D and
F.T.S., but this trend between us has got to change. We all need to
step it up as a whole. Don't forget, it can get real lonely at
the
top, might as well work together and squash all the hatred.
This forum can also be the place where we can talk to police
officials about issues that directly affect us. How many of ya'll
have been pulled over in the Central District for no reason except
your skin color? How many people have ever been harassed or
brutalized by an officer of the law. Recently, a friend of mine was
arrested and held by Westlake mall police for of all things passing
out promotional flyers for hip-hop events. What is it with the hip-
hop nation and police? Why does it seem that members of this culture
are the most harassed and brutalized by police? We all have stories,
this forum will hopefully enable us to voice these sentiments and
others with actual police officers and officials, and get their
feedback and hear their reasoning.
This rally/press conference will also include performances by
Seattle's top DJ's and groups. These will not only be a
showcase
of our
skills, but an example that our audience can behave in the proper
manner. The
Word of Mouth Tour went down without incident, the Up In Smoke Tour
went down without incident, at the Tacoma Dome of all places. If we
can continue our overall good behavior at these shows and others like
it, the media, police officials, and politicians can and will have
nothing bad to say about hip-hop.
So now the rest is up to you. We need the support of everyone
who's
ever bought a rap album. We need the support of those in the techno,
jungle, rock, punk, and drum n` bass communities. We need the
support
of all club owners, promoters, artists, media, and politicians who
know hip-hop is not the problem and the reason for the violence that
went down last week in Pioneer Square. This is our chance to stand up
and voice our opinions. This is our opportunity to be heard people.
Hip-hop right now is in a state of emergency. They want to end hip-
hop in Seattle, and trust me, they will find a way to do so if we
don't stand up, as a collective, and fight back. Join us in the
battle and show up this Saturday at the Westlake Center at 2pm. Love
fights back. Peace and prosperity.
