Ghetto Nation

I picked this up from the new books shelf at the library. I have long been intrigued, in a bad way, by the proliferation of hip-hop culture in the mainstream. When white, middle-class people dress like rappers; when serious journalistic publications use hip-hop slang; when "bling" and "hos" are a part of the "nice kids" thinking, I get a bit frustrated.

Ms. Daniels doesn't really share my frustration. She notices these things, too, and writes about them with the trained eye of a journalist and as a self-described ghetto product. The book isn't particularly organized. Nor does she have any particular thing to say. But there are some entertaining and insightful essays here discussing the spread of ghetto values into the larger culture, as well as the African-American experience. The value of the book really lies in the latter.

Her conclusion is that we are all ghetto. I don't accept it. She comes really close to saying to ghetto culture, "This is wrong!" but she doesn't. She talks extensively about "babymamas" and the guys on the corner, and implies the need for education, work ethic, and responsible parenting, but I wish she would put her weight fully behind Bill Cosby, who she grudgingly, partially endorses.

As a white man, I guess I can't say much about black culture. But as the parent of a black son (and teacher to a bunch of under-achieving black boys), I want to say to black men, "It's time for a culture shift! Don't let ghetto and bling and hip-hop define you!" Ms. Daniels gets part-way there, but not quite.