Hip Hop Subculture

Throughout their history, African-Americans experienced oppression, racial segregation, racism and slavery to a great extent. Their affliction led to the emergence of the Civil Rights Movement which was one of the biggest social movements in the history of mankind. The legacy of this movement had a powerful impact on the formation of the Hip Hop subculture. Hip Hop also plays a very important role in the contemporary culture and society of the black community.

After the abolition of slavery, African-Americans still had to deal with white oppression and racial segregation which affected education, medical care, employment and different services, also they had to wait almost a century to reconsider their social positions and stand up for their

Young blacks created their own socio-political movement, which consists of graffiti art, rapping, disc jockeying and diverse forms of dancing. They expressed their feelings, thoughts, but most importantly, the problems they had to face, which were related to their race, gender and social status. Although the Civil Rights Movement contributed substantial rights to African-Americans, there were still issues crucial to be dealt with, but after the movement there were no other proper platforms for the following generations to continue their fight for social equality. Hip Hop provided this platform and with the application of music and art, it could express the social and political challenges that affects African-Americans in the post-Civil Rights Movement era. In the 1990’s Hip Hop lived its prime, subgenres started to appear and famous groups, representatives led their community, providing a voice to a group of people trying to deliver their message. Through their lyrics they were able to express their opinions about society, the government and the treatment of African-Americans in the U.S. for decades. The black community used this platform to protest against social attitudes and try to change them. The famous MCs like 2Pac, Biggie, Snoop Dogg and rap groups, for instance the Wu-Tang Clan or the N.W.A. were orators of the 90’s generation. Their work intended to

was one of the most iconic figures of the Civil Rights Movement. Martin was a determinative character, his ideologies and leadership were the driving forces for the movement. He also won the 1964 Noble Peace Prize for his works and the role he played in the movement. Martin Luther King was the leader of the Montgomery Bus Boycott, which was a civil-rights protest against the segregated seating on public buses. This event is regarded as the first large-scale U.S. demonstration against segregation. (History.com Staff. “Montgomery Bus Boycott.” History.com, A&E Television Networks, 2010, www.history.com/topics/black-history/montgomery-bus-boycott.) The outburst of this protest was caused by the case of Rosa Parks. She was an African-American dressmaker, who refused to give up her seat in the “colored section” to a white passenger just because the white section was full. She resisted bus segregation and got arrested for her “crime”. Four days after this incident, the Montgomery Improvement Association elected Martin Luther King Jr. as its president. Martin Luther King was definitely a true leader of the movement; he was a voice of the black community whose dream was to live in a nation where racial equality stands on hard grounds. As he says in his famous speech called I Have a Dream, “I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character”