... the other Black experience
DOES ATLANTA LIVE UP TO THE HYPE???
The people in Atlanta never seem to travel to far from the stereotypes.The seem to stay in their roles of what is considered the appropriate way of acting, dressing, and being "black." Many people in the south, especially African Americans in the south will not try something new until whatever it is becomes a popular trend, popularized by an hip hop artist, and then approved by hip hop culture.
I think back during the times of baggy jeans, and long white tees. My true
ATLiens, will remeber the popular song by Dem Franchise Boyz "White Tee," a song popularizing the trend of wearing big, long, tall white tees. This trend went on for a very long time. As average as it may seem to wear just plain white shirts, thats what we were doing in the south. However hip hop culture in the 90's everywhere, was very into baggy clothing until maybe 2000, artist like Kanye West change the mold. Hip hop culture started accepting preppy clothing. Kanye says, "Raulph Lauren was borin until I wore him." Which has remained true. However, the South is always late. Since the beginning of time, the south has been the last area to catch on to the trends. Remeber Industrialization... lol.. But thats another topic of discussion.
However my point is, in many other parts of the country, black communities have been breaking boundaries, stepping outside of stereotypes, and becoming involved in activities that aren't neccessarily part of black/hip hop culture, while the South has been lagging behind. Theres a big Afro-Punk Scene, Blipster (Black Hipster) scene, and Black skaters are popping up all over the place. This has been going for a very long time, YEARS!!!! Especially in areas like California, and some northern areas. But the South only recently decided that it was okay to look like a rockstar or dress like a skater, with Lil Wayn'es acceptance of Rock culture.
Since Lil Wayne has entered the scene many people in the South have grown dreads, bought guitars, got lip piercings, where skinny jeans, and put on the front of "Party like a rockstar" under the guise of the new trend called, "White Boy/Black Boy Swag."
Although I am happy to see the South catching up with the latest Fashion trends, it is JUST that! A FASHION TREND! Many of the people who have grown mohawks, where skinny jeans, vans, and other things attributed to punk fashion have not changed their mentality. It has been made apparent in the South that it is okay to change your style a dress punk, hipster, or like a skater, but its still not okay to act like them. So in other words, they may look like a duck, but they still bark, and play like a dog. They haven't embrace the different cultures or the different music, they have olnly embraced the style. However, they don't embrace the style to the full extent, Gauged ears in the South is still very uncommon, especially in the black community. They where the attire, but they have not accepted the piercings. That part seems alittle extreme. And when embracing these different style the still manage to not step to far outside of the box, by keeping their grills, and sagging the skinny jeans below their asses.
When I travel other places, theres so much diversity in the black community. You have white kids hanging with black kids, and black kids hanging with white kids. Black people can show interest in things outside of hip hop culture, without being ostracized for being different or being outcasted. But the South has remain the South. If you step to far out the box, you are considered strange, different, abnormal or a poser.
I was born in Atlanta and believe that it is is a great place to live and it offers many options, of places to go and things to do.However we must acknowledge that Georgia is still a very racist state, where interracial couples, are looked at with disgust. Race isn't a issue of the past. Therefore there is still alot of intolerance, and not too much room to step outside what is consider appropriate for somene "black" to say or do.
Atlanta is ranked as the gayest city in America! So I must have a greater chance then most to meet the girl of my dreams. So why do I still feel like my options for finding some like me who is apart of the homosexual community are so limited? Am I just not looking or do they really not exist.
I want to hear everyone's opinions. Prove me wrong..
I think back during the times of baggy jeans, and long white tees. My true
ATLiens, will remeber the popular song by Dem Franchise Boyz "White Tee," a song popularizing the trend of wearing big, long, tall white tees. This trend went on for a very long time. As average as it may seem to wear just plain white shirts, thats what we were doing in the south. However hip hop culture in the 90's everywhere, was very into baggy clothing until maybe 2000, artist like Kanye West change the mold. Hip hop culture started accepting preppy clothing. Kanye says, "Raulph Lauren was borin until I wore him." Which has remained true. However, the South is always late. Since the beginning of time, the south has been the last area to catch on to the trends. Remeber Industrialization... lol.. But thats another topic of discussion.
However my point is, in many other parts of the country, black communities have been breaking boundaries, stepping outside of stereotypes, and becoming involved in activities that aren't neccessarily part of black/hip hop culture, while the South has been lagging behind. Theres a big Afro-Punk Scene, Blipster (Black Hipster) scene, and Black skaters are popping up all over the place. This has been going for a very long time, YEARS!!!! Especially in areas like California, and some northern areas. But the South only recently decided that it was okay to look like a rockstar or dress like a skater, with Lil Wayn'es acceptance of Rock culture.
Since Lil Wayne has entered the scene many people in the South have grown dreads, bought guitars, got lip piercings, where skinny jeans, and put on the front of "Party like a rockstar" under the guise of the new trend called, "White Boy/Black Boy Swag."
Although I am happy to see the South catching up with the latest Fashion trends, it is JUST that! A FASHION TREND! Many of the people who have grown mohawks, where skinny jeans, vans, and other things attributed to punk fashion have not changed their mentality. It has been made apparent in the South that it is okay to change your style a dress punk, hipster, or like a skater, but its still not okay to act like them. So in other words, they may look like a duck, but they still bark, and play like a dog. They haven't embrace the different cultures or the different music, they have olnly embraced the style. However, they don't embrace the style to the full extent, Gauged ears in the South is still very uncommon, especially in the black community. They where the attire, but they have not accepted the piercings. That part seems alittle extreme. And when embracing these different style the still manage to not step to far outside of the box, by keeping their grills, and sagging the skinny jeans below their asses.
When I travel other places, theres so much diversity in the black community. You have white kids hanging with black kids, and black kids hanging with white kids. Black people can show interest in things outside of hip hop culture, without being ostracized for being different or being outcasted. But the South has remain the South. If you step to far out the box, you are considered strange, different, abnormal or a poser.
I was born in Atlanta and believe that it is is a great place to live and it offers many options, of places to go and things to do.However we must acknowledge that Georgia is still a very racist state, where interracial couples, are looked at with disgust. Race isn't a issue of the past. Therefore there is still alot of intolerance, and not too much room to step outside what is consider appropriate for somene "black" to say or do.
Atlanta is ranked as the gayest city in America! So I must have a greater chance then most to meet the girl of my dreams. So why do I still feel like my options for finding some like me who is apart of the homosexual community are so limited? Am I just not looking or do they really not exist.
I want to hear everyone's opinions. Prove me wrong..
Replies to This Discussion
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Permalink Reply by Rage_Proletaire on -
Sonic Speed Society said:Rage_Proletaire said:
Smells like someone is constantly cooking pork of some kind, the summers are too hot, and everyone one down there is a fake who like to hide in their trailer all day. It just smells bad, like not the wilderness... I guess it's because people shit it the woods or something like that.Sonic Speed Society said:I'm never going back, the south is a smelly over vegetated dead zone. Ain't nothing out there
lmao, really?
The whole thing smells?
And you don't wanna walk the roads at night, bats come flying out and shit.
Yeah, bats fly out at night; they're built for that.
I don't know if I'm to take you seriously or not (and I doubt you care), but I am amused.
=P
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Permalink Reply by Compound Egret on -
People run the gamut. Making sweeping generalizations about large groups of people because of their geographic region, the music they listen to, etc, really just holds you back in the long term. You may miss out on interacting with some cool people because y'all don't like all the same things, and when you get to the "promised land" of your chosen subculture you will disappointed by the authentic humanity of the residents. They have idiots there too.
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Permalink Reply by Rage_Proletaire on
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Compound Egret said:You may miss out on interacting with some cool people because y'all don't like all the same things, and when you get to the "promised land" of your chosen subculture you will disappointed by the authentic humanity of the residents. They have idiots there too.
There was a girl who used to shadow me from time to time on my breaks at work, because she thought my hair and clothes made me look like I was "from somewhere interesting."
Wish I had the words to say the above to her; I used to end up stuttering when she would wow about how cool "everybody" is/was in NY, even though she'd never been there.
Even when I thought I was all alone in my desert in my late-teens, I knew there had to be souls between here and the next big stop who felt isolated as well. This site would attest to the truth that there's no one place or garden on earth where cool/cultured/fascinating people all sprout from.
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Permalink Reply by Madamoiselle De Sade on -
I feel the exact same way about New york, not my kind of place. Or any big crowded city. I was just joking because I hear the same "I wish I was from somewhere interesting [insert northern big city here]" all the time; among people there is no value for where the actually are- they always want to be somewhere else instead of learning more about where they are. To a lot of people being in the south is very painful just because they stay in the same little area all the time or they buy into the stereotypes. I say we help them get up there, do another Great Migration and open up land rushes down here.
People here tell me that I don't act like I'm from here, maybe it's because I actually enjoy being from here. And I actually like living in the South and will probably never live anywhere else.
Rage_Proletaire said:I thought, and thought, and thought. I got nothing for ya.
-- But -- I'm trying to be fair and give the benefit of the doubt. Anywhere where there are populations of people, there's a culture of some kind. May not be the one you want or are interested in, necessarily (Mardi Gras is a big deal down here, although personally I'm neither Catholic nor interested), but there's always going to be an accumulation of ideas and ways of living that amount to something specific to an environment.
Not trying to be pedantic ('cause again -- I've no answer to your question), but surely the local "culture" isn't uniformly the same between Florida and Texas...
Don't think I'm built for New York. Never been there, so I can't say that with certainty, but ... I'm not a fan of crowds, crowded populations, crowded dwellings, and the like. There's things I'd love to see and do there, but ... wouldn't live there for anything in the world (too tourist-friendly? I donno)...
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Permalink Reply by Dean Chuck Vandel on
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Yeah, dont get me wrong. Atlanta is very nice place to live. Being black you dont feel out of place because everyone else is black. And theres alot of nice stuff and things to do. Its definintely the place to be if your black and GAY. lol... but as far as having an large scene of people who are step out the norm, well that doesnt exist much. but proton is awesome
CocoaPuss Zine said:i always thought that atlanta was like "black people's heaven" and was looking forward to going there when i died, mostly because i'm from tacoma/seattle and have never seen more than 10 black people anywhere at one time in my entire life. now i have my doubts about it... oh well. one thing about atlanta though is that everyone is so damn happy to be from there.
i think they do have a few original people there, like outkast and the lesser known group, proton, there could be more, if you look hard enough...
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Permalink Reply by Aaron Mallory on -
Compound Egret said:People run the gamut. Making sweeping generalizations about large groups of people because of their geographic region, the music they listen to, etc, really just holds you back in the long term. You may miss out on interacting with some cool people because y'all don't like all the same things, and when you get to the "promised land" of your chosen subculture you will disappointed by the authentic humanity of the residents. They have idiots there too.
I think this is dead on. I am from Houston but live in LA. I prefer to be in a place where people are real and accountable than fake and trying to live outside the social norm. Also Blacks only makeup about 9 to 10 percent of major cities. If you aint in the hood then you aint seeing any Black people in Los Angeles. Its all hype anyway trying to be apart of this hipster lack of culture generation.
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Permalink Reply by Brandon on -
Southern Hospitality does not exist. It is the biggest failure of a whatever its supposed to be anyway. People in the south think that smiling in your face and saying hello to you and waving at everyone makes you a good person somehow. Even a better person then someone from the North since you don't do these things. Not everyone thinks this way but I've lived here for a good portion of my life (from NYC originally) and ive been told this from family, College Professors, everything. . Yes no one here was skating or listening to anything but Rap/RnB When I got here some 5+ years ago. However I have noticed in the past Year or so People just dressing "scene" or "hipster" whatever you want to call it. Music is pretty much the same.
TLDR version
The south is behind. Most of them understand this and prefer it that way.
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Permalink Reply by Ghettopunkrocker on -
Eh, I never noticed a ton of "Conservative Negros" (Maryland is a blue state actually) Where I hang out, there's a good mix of alt kids. Especially at Anime conventions.
Mlle d. Sade said:It's worse in Atlanta because it's in the "deep" south (they like to think). Black debutant balls make me want to pull a Marx Bros. and run off with the campaign. Maybe you get to see all the good parts for "alternative" people and don't see the conservative negro complex.
Or funeral box negroes as they are sometimes called. By me.
Ghettopunkrocker said:I knew that about Atlanta years ago until I was dragged there in like February 2009 on business. I ALREADY KNEW THAT! Okay, I'm from the D.C./Maryland area and I don't see how it's that conservative really. Mlle d. Sade said:Atlanta is, outside of DC/Maryland is the conservative/norm negro capital of the world.
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Permalink Reply by Miss Lashea on -
Of course this is the bible belt (the south) but the smells, the bats....that's a bit far-fetched don't you think? I mean really? Every state in the south? I don't think so.
Sonic Speed Society said:Rage_Proletaire said:
Smells like someone is constantly cooking pork of some kind, the summers are too hot, and everyone one down there is a fake who like to hide in their trailer all day. It just smells bad, like not the wilderness... I guess it's because people shit it the woods or something like that.Sonic Speed Society said:I'm never going back, the south is a smelly over vegetated dead zone. Ain't nothing out there
lmao, really?
The whole thing smells?
And you don't wanna walk the roads at night, bats come flying out and shit.
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Permalink Reply by Madamoiselle De Sade on
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lol he's just an uppity northerner so of course he's going to say that. :P
I prefer heat. My body is built to take heat and wither in the cold. I'd rather smell the smells of nature than car exhaust. I'd rather be in the blinding sun than being surrounded by buildings so tall I can't see the sun. I hate going downtown here because I hate "city" surroundings. When I retire, get old, I'm building a house where my mother was born and living the rest of my days in country seclusion.
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Permalink Reply by Rage_Proletaire on
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Mlle d. Sade said:... living the rest of my days in country seclusion.
Amen.
And legally change my name to "Look for me, nucca..."
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Permalink Reply by Miss Lashea on
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I agree!!!!!!!!
Mlle d. Sade said:lol he's just an uppity northerner so of course he's going to say that. :P
I prefer heat. My body is built to take heat and wither in the cold. I'd rather smell the smells of nature than car exhaust. I'd rather be in the blinding sun than being surrounded by buildings so tall I can't see the sun. I hate going downtown here because I hate "city" surroundings. When I retire, get old, I'm building a house where my mother was born and living the rest of my days in country seclusion.
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