During the month of January 2004 Rush went over to the Bay Area (USA) to attend the Symposium on the Arts & Social Justice Movements in Contemporary Japan & Beyond. He told me it was a life changing moment for him and that he cannot wait to go there again. This week he writes this article to share the experience with us.

“The prison relieves us of the responsibility of seriously engaging with the problems of our society, especially those produced by racism and, increasingly, global capitalism.”-Angela Davis

Finally the silence is broken after a state of depressiveness that made me want to quit this hip hop game. After being surrounded by people that are uninspiring it can be damn depressing but I realized my worth, what my purpose is and I’m here to fulfill that reality cos that’s what it is -reality!

I believe I was born with a purpose in this thing we call life. There is more to life than just hip hop and I had to represent what role hip hop has played for me and people within my society that received the same information that our school systems cannot supply to our brains. 

On invitation of Stanford university, co-sponsored by the Committee for Black Performing Arts, the Institute for Diversity in Arts, and the Asian American Activities Center, I descended to foreign grounds that my American branded sneakers never put foot on before, being in the air for more than a day was tiring though, but I could not let those humanly feelings damper the spirit of ancestors that got carried on via a human offering named Rushay. I entered the Bay Area via an international airport in San Francisco and was met by the friendly smile of Dr Adrienne Hurley who showed this African brotha mad love, concerned about my well-being, treating me worse then my mum. The first couple of days was spent in my hotel room catching up with some lost sleep (a time difference of 10 hours), damn I was up at 1 in the morning not being able to sleep at all, hoping Chucky don’t come for my black ass. I spent the first couple of days in my hotel room not venturing out scared for the KKK and other “white power” organizations that’s looking for me wanting to abuse me worse than the LAPD did to Rodney King. 

I want to ask you a question what role did hip hop play for you as an individual, we all hear people praising hip hop but what has it done for you? Think about it and fill the answers within that blank spaces in your cranium! It seems like ten years since I last wrote a essay and I was always good in communicating with a pen cos my words seem to stutter when I was put on a pedestal. I’m a put a crown on king hip hop’s dome and thank him/her for this knowledge him/her gave me. Sharing a stage with people that’s all studying towards doctorates and professorship but no man made degree is going to discard me from saying what’s on my mind yes siree nobody can stand in my way but me. 

The event was kicked off officially with spoken word artist Kiyomi Burchill spitting venomous poetry that seemed to smooth all my joints filled with arthritis. She came straight to the point not beating round the bush. 

Chizuco Naito dropped bombs on us no not the same bombs that was dropped on Nagasaki, Hiroshima or any city that came under fire during world war one, two or world war three that’s in the making, no she spoke about “literature in Japan and the emperor system”. 

Carla Williams (www.carlagirl.net) showcased a pictorial showpiece that was inspired by “Yasumasa Morimura and Nikki S.Lee:  Playing with Race and Culture”. Carla showcased some pics that would be judged being demented by media for its portrayal of pictures that can be more deceiving than a chameleon but this was Carla’s stage and it is as open as Bush’s government is to foreigners looking for the freedom that the 50 stars is suppose to depict in its national flag. 

The symposium was divided in two sections with a 20 minute break between each set, the second set was to start off with me delivering a talk that I titled “The Restitution of History through Hip Hop”. I screened the documentary that I took with me and briefed on what role hip hop has played in educating people from my area and other districts of the world where it is seen as a educational tool more so than just entertainment. Hip hop has been inspirational in making me an individual that realized I have an important role to play in this society, and when I say society I’m not thinking just in the context of South Africa but globally cos we are part of a global community and we need to look at the bigger picture. 

Hip Hop (the honorable) is one of the reasons you visiting this website right now cos you on a constant trip for knowledge and the knowledge is the salvation to a lot of lies that’s being spread to a multitude of people. 

Part two section 1.2 brings Setsu Shigematsu a lecturer in ethnic studies with new born baby to the table “Symbolic Justice & Radical Incommensurability Reflections on First World Activism Post 9-11“. Ask yourself what impact did 9-11 have on you? Ask yourself why you were fingerprinted and photographed to enter the land of the free? Why you turn your head when you see a Muslim associating him/her as being terrorist, its all part of the confusion. Wake fucking up and realize that and you would be a useful human being not just a dummy in society. The Blair, Bush project gave birth to a reign of fire”-Blacknoise. 

Let me continue with my breakdown of the Symposium or I’m a get all vented and I have to take care cos people is watching us better believe that! Ok we had baby bear, mama bear now it’s papa bears turn Dylan Rodriguez was the last individual on Stanford’s agenda. Dylan brought “Prison Abolitionism and the Pitfalls of the Progressive Consensus” to the Oksenberg conference rooms attention, having this “freedom” that I’m able to live I felt the disparity when hearing about people imprisoned for their political viewpoint, people that’s being falsely encaged because they dare speak out against social ills that can be cured if we stand together. My mind is questioning how long we going to shout out free Mumia, Eddie Hatcher, Leonard Peltier and other political prisoners. Why don’t we take that freedom and give it back to them? When last did we have a rebellion worthy of something that you can type into your Microsoft Encyclopedia and it will just overflow ya computers hardrive space with information, scary hey well the truth is we sleeping on our freedom that’s slowly been taken away from us! Enrichment would be a good description of the symposium and an eye-opener in making me realize that we can’t take hip hop for granted, Mau Mau be the rebellion. Jenro a female mcee from the Bay area who recently graced Africasgateway ended the symposium off with a performance that did justice to the gathering.

Written by Rush

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