Essay Sample on What Is Redlining and How Did Housing Covenant System Affect Communities of Colour

Introduction

Redlining is a term whose origin can be traced to the 1930s at a time when the issue of discrimination against the people of colour had taken a significant turn (Jan 1). The term refers to limitations by mortgage lenders that cut off particular communities that showed a high risk of defaulting the loans. One of the most prominent lenders was the Home Owners' Loan Corp (HOLC) that marked high-risk communities as red while those that were safe had a blue mark (Jan 2). It is important to note that the African-American communities had a red mark while the White Americans had a safe mark on their communities. Housing covenant system refers to the agreements made by a particular group of private homeowners that barred them from making any property sales to people of colour. Evidently, the American Government at the time supported these covenants whereby it allowed veterans to purchase houses with bank loans at a low-interest rate as long as they did not sell to the Black Americans (Oshinsky 1). One effect of this covenant was that many Black folks were left homeless while others occupied houses that had poor living conditions even though they could afford better housing. These restrictions also diminished the chances of African-Americans to excel economically due to their limited opportunities (Oshinsky 2). Moreover, these communities faced emotional and psychological torture if they tried purchasing houses in these regions that had open houses. For instance, when a Black American bought a house, the White community responded by pelting rocks into his home and ruined his lawn through fire. Such actions had the intentions of subjecting emotional torture to the occupant to discourage him from occupying the region (Oshinsky 3).

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Does participation in Black cultural experiences necessitate the loss of one's culture? If one is not Black.

America is a country of various racial and ethnic groups such as Black, White, and the Hispanic community. Each group comprises of different cultural attributes depending on their native origin. For instance, some of the Black Americans practice unique cultural experiences that have an African native origin ("Center for Substance Abuse Treatment" 16). However, this does not mean that these different groups cannot share cultural experiences without dilution of their own cultures. Cultural identity involves the interactions of various individuals in terms of their behaviors, beliefs, and experiences that allow association among them. It is not correct to state that these cross-experiences can lead to the loss of one's culture. This is because these interactions do not lead to erosion of culture but allow diversification and appreciation of other cultures. When the White community engages in activities with the Black Americans, they do not lose their cultures but gain more insight into the new culture. Such knowledge will enable better relations with others and more understanding of the origins of other individuals. Erosion of one's culture can only be affecting by a person's mentality ("Center for Substance Abuse Treatment" 16). A person who is not appreciative of their own cultural identity may prefer to follow a new identity that pleases him or her.

This scandal began in 1980 and involved the National Security Council (NSC) led by President Reagan (Lynch, Barnouw, & Bogen 3). It involves the illegal ties with Contras and Iranian whereby the government sold weapons illegal to Iran through Israel to prevent identification of their activities by security agencies involves. The intentions for these sales to Iran were to act as a show of good faith by the Americans to entice the Iranians to release American hostages (Lynch, Barnouw, & Bogen 3). Moreover, the council supplied weapons to the Contras to assist them in the fight against the leadership of Anastasio Somoza who used dictatorship as a form of leadership. A Joint House-Senate Committee came into place to investigate the claims by the public whereby the titled this scandal as Iran-Contra Scandal to show the involvement of the three countries (Lynch, Barnouw, & Bogen 3). It is evident of America's involvement in the scandal through an audit done that showed the government supply of $48 million to the Contra rebellious community. One impact of this scandal to the internal environment was the introduction of drugs into the country from Nicaragua. The country, especially in states such as Los Angeles, became a center for drug trafficking inside and outside America (Michael 2). The drugs entered the country planes that transported weapons and supplies to Contras' guerrilla warriors. The communities greatly affected by drug trafficking problem was the Black community leading to the increase of drug violence. New gangs came into a shape that identified themselves with particular hip-hop cultures and use of drugs that enhanced their crime activities (Michael 2).

In what ways are African Americans liberal? Which black cultural institution tend towards conservative perspective and which areas.

The Black American population impacts greatly on the electoral system in the country. Unlike the White Americans, the majority of the Black community regard themselves as a liberal community. The basic definition of liberal is the inclination of voters towards democratic policies that seem to suit the population (Johnson 1). Moreover, this definition describes a political community whose political ideas can be altered every now and then to suit their perspectives. The reason for the change of opinion from conservative to democratic policies occurred in 1964 when a conservative politician failed to support the civil rights issues (Johnson 2). One of the ways in which the Black Americans are viewed as liberal is due to their racial unity. The social pressures facing the community may have led to the change of the Black Americans. Moreover, their need for a change in civil rights issues plays a key role in their choice of liberal leaders. Another way through which the African Americans show their liberal support against same-sex rights. Unlike the conservatives that allow for the expression of all types of marriages, the Black Americans do not support such activities. Moreover, these liberal only support politicians with intentions on ending racial segregation, inequality, and high rates of Black unemployment. However, an institution called the Black Conservatism does not agree with some of the Black supremacist (Johnson 4). In their defense, they support a government that supports policies such as capitalism, free markets, and traditionalism. They also allow same-sex marriages, unlike the liberals.

What are the Characteristics of Hip-hop Music in the First Decade of its Existence? Explain the rise in Gangster Rap. Does Hip-hop have a Unique Dress Code?

One characteristic of hip-hop was that the Blacks and Latinos became the pioneers of the music in the early 70s. Another unique characteristic was that the artists during this time engaged in face-to-face rapping competition as a way of gaining more followers and more market for their art. Music during this period had significant purposes such as acting as a voice for the marginalized community that faced all forms of discrimination by the White supremacists. Another characteristic was that this music was held in parties such as Block and back-to-school parties held outside. The variety of cultures in different cities in the US influenced the type of music produced by these artists. For instance, the high rate of immigration of people of Jamaican origin had a significant influence on the music produced by these artists such as Kool Herc. A new form of hip-hop came up in the late 1980s called the West Coast rap that involved the display of different kinds of violence either on words or on actual grounds (Light & Tate par 7). This rap brought about the growth of gangster rap that saw singers use threatening lyrics towards the police department and other hip-hop artists that brought competition to the music (Light & Tate par 7). Hip-hop artists dressed in unique dress code such as the possession of heavy and expensive jewelry, caps, sweatpants, and sports shoes to symbolize wealth, which was one attribute depicted by the genre

What are the Four Elements of Hip-hop? What is a B-boy? What is Trap Music? Why is it called that? Where does it come from? How long will it Remain Relevant?

Hip-hop is thought to have originated in a small town called the Bronx in New York City. It became popular among the Black Americans since its origin in the 1970s whereby they used this music to create awareness among the Black population and also to educate the other races that had marginalized the group (Light & Tate par 3). Kool Herc is regarded as the father of hip-hop through his introduction of turntables that marked a unique element in hip-hop. There were four key elements that symbolized hip-hop in the first decade of its introduction. The first element was deejaying or turntabling (Light & Tate par 3). This aspect involved the use of breaks in music whereby two mixers could be applied to allow the deejay to shift from one record to another in a rhythmic manner that did not ruin the tone of the songs. The second element was the emceeing, which involved the rhythmic use of the mouth to produce a pattern of wordplay that comprised of various inclusions such as political or sexual tones (Light & Tate par 3). Use of these wordplays gave the music a sense of uniqueness that different from other types of music that came to effect in the late 20th Century. The third element was graffiti that involved a unique aspect of spray painting walls with numerous messages that displayed a sense of loyalty to the genre. The founder of this element was Taki 183 who would tag walls at night to avoid legal consequences by the government due to vandalism (Light & Tate par 5). Later on, more youths followed the spray painting trends of Taki 183. The last element was break dancing, which symbolized a unique pop dance that caused the youths to break dance energetically to the rhythm of the songs. B-boying also was known as break dancing is a form of dance popularly associated with hip-hop whereby dancing use unique moves such as freezes and power moves to depict their talents (Light & Tate par 3). Trap music refers to a form of hip-hop music that began in 1990 that was symbolized by heavy drums and whose music symbolized the life of these artists that was filled with all forms of hardships such as poverty. This music began at a time when drug trafficking was at its peak in America hence the name "Trap" that symbolized places where drug cartels carried out their drug trades. Due to the continued rise in new rap artists, there is a high chance that this form of music will still remain relevant as the country heads towards a new century.

Works Cited

Center for Substance Abuse Treatment. "Improving cultural competence." (2014).p. 1-307

Jan Tracy. "Redlining was Banned 50 Years Ago. It's Still Hurting Minority Today." Washington Post, 28 March 2018. P.1-4

Johnson, R. Theodore. "Why are African-Americans such Loyal Democrats when they are so Ideologically Diverse?" The Washington Post, 28 September 2016. P. 1-4

Light, Alan and Tate, Greg. Hip-hop Music and Cultural Movement. Encyclopedia Britannica, 21 November. 2018, https://www.britannica.com/art/hip-hop. Accessed 5 December 2018.

Lynch, Michael, Erik Barnouw, and David Bogen. The spectacle of history: Speech, text, and memory at the Iran-Contra hearings. Duke University Press, 1996. P. 1-239

Michael. "Iran-Contra, Crack Cocaine, and the Transformation of Hip-hop by Miles Whi...