Walking the Talk: A Hip-Hop Baby's Take on Teaching Social Justice

• In Event: Roundtable Session 34
  In Roundtable Session: Teaching Social Justice Ain't Easy: Stories of Historically Black College and University Faculty Who Walk the Talk

Abstract

I was raised in the Bronx during the Hip-Hop generation. Therefore, I am a Hip-Hop baby! Though Hip-Hop was born as DJ Kool Herc deejayed at his sister's birthday party, Hip-Hop was much more than just music. Hip-hop became a movement, and I became an integral part of that movement. When Melle Mel told everyone, “Don't push me 'cuz I'm close to the edge", I felt the reverberations throughout a people who were struggling to find the right outlet and voice for their frustrations. This truth-telling inspired me. I was also deeply influenced by the fierce, empowered women of Salt-N-Pepa; strong, no non-sense Queen Latifah; and powerful teachings of KRS-One. Furthermore, the Stop the Violence Movement taught me that I had the power to push for democratic change and solidified me as a bourgeoning social justice activist. My talk became about preventing the self-destruction of my people and my counterparts.
Hip-Hop is about revolution. It speaks to democratic change - resistance against oppression, against the norm, against the "box." Hip-Hop represents (yes, even today) the refusal to stay the same, resistance against the status quo, and open arms to newness. As a young woman, I learned how to navigate myself as a young woman in a male-dominated industry as a dancer in music videos and live performances; I took the lessons learned from Hip-Hop and scholars like bell hooks, Patricia Hill Collins, and Joan Morgan into my adulthood as a social justice activist. As an educator - first for elementary school-aged children and now for college-aged students, I have become more and more committed to walking the talk that I had learned earlier in my life.
As a university professor, I push all of my students to reflect on what social justice means and the work it takes to become social justice activists. During the first week of class, I work with my students to develop a “Social Justice Purpose Statement.” I explain that in order for them to model social justice, they must begin by reflecting upon who they are, how they arrived in this place, and where they are going. Through this reflective activity, I push students to discuss and introspect. I believe this to be a crucial step in their development as social justice activists.
In my effort to further walk my talk, I also developed an introductory-level general education course called Advancing the Academic Success of Black Males. This course is designed to push students of all majors as they embrace the concept of social justice, engage research on Black male academic progress in America, and think critically about how they can best interact with Black male youth as they traverse their individual worlds. When I engage my students in conversations about social justice, they come alive, and become inspired. They become inspired to live fully, to change the world, and to change themselves. Most importantly, they become inspired to be the change they wish to see in the world and truly walk th

Author

• Dawn Nicole Hicks Tafari, Winston-Salem State University