By Scott Tibbs, July 16, 2004
----Original Message Follows----
From: Scott Tibbs <tibbs1973@yahoo.com>
To: info@defjam.com
Subject: "Confessions"
Date: Fri, 16 Jul 2004 10:33:03 -0700 (PDT)
To whom it may concern,
I recently read an article about a song by one of your artists, Joe Budden, which portrays violence against pregnant women in a favorable light. The song, "Confessions", contains the following lyrics:
Pray that she abort that, If she's talkin' 'bout keepin' it
One hit to the stomach, She's leakin' it.
I find this highly offensive. Advocating intentionally causing a miscarriage is beyond the bounds of what should be expected in a civilized society.
Budden says that the lyrics represent the thoughts of men who are "powerless" when they discover their girlfriends are pregnant. I have a thought as to how these men can avoid being "powerless": don't have sexual intercourse unless you are willing to accept the responsibility of being a parent. Since no birth control is 100% effective, men give their implied consent to parenthood when they have sexual intercourse.
You say that Budden has freedom of speech, and he certainly does. His speech, repulsive as it is, is protected by the First Amendment to the Constitution. I certainly do not favor governmental restrictions on the content of his speech.
However, just because you have the right to say something does not mean you should. The violent, misogynistic message Budden spreads is inappropriate. Furthermore, while Budden's freedom of speech does not require you to amplify that speech by distributing records with these lyrics.
Thank you for your time.
Scott Tibbs
tibbs1973@yahoo.com
UPDATE: July 16, 2004
----Original Message Follows----
From: Scott Tibbs <tibbs1973@yahoo.com>
To: now@now.org, feminist@feminist.org
Date: Fri, 16 Jul 2004 16:37:26 -0700 (PDT)
Subject: Mysogynistic themes in rap music.
The National Organization for Women and the Feminist Majority are arguably the two most prominent feminist organizations in the United States. Given that, I encourage you to consider taking a stand on the new song by rapper Joe Budden, which expresses misogynistic themes.
The song contains the following lyrics: Pray that she abort that, If she's talkin' 'bout keepin' it / One hit to the stomach, She's leakin' it. I think such expression of hostility, given our nation's problem with domestic violence, is disturbing.
Given Budden's remarks on AllHipHop.com, it appears that he is sympathizing with violence against pregnant women: ""When you get somebody pregnant, you can make suggestions, but the bottom line is they [women] have the end say-so," Budden told AllHipHop.com. "As a guy, you wonder 'What can I do to take that power away?'"
Frankly, I believe that Budden's later disclaimer about not supporting violence was backpedaling after he was called out on his repulsive lyrics.
Rap music has an unfortunate history of misogynistic themes, and I believe that feminist groups and conservatives can join in condemning these irresponsible words. Pro-life organizations have already denounced Budden for his lyrics. Feminists should join them, if for no other reason than putting violence against women in a positive light.
