A musical pioneer who played a central role in defining a genre of music that now dominates the airwaves has been accused of child molestation by four men, who say the man abused them when they were boys in the 80s.
Where’s the media outrage?
The answer to that question tells us a lot about the racial divide in the US — and the racial divide in our mass media.
The allegations against Afrika Bambaataa, the hip hop DJ whose early tracks, particularly the Kraftwerk-swiping Planet Rock, helped to define and popularize both hiphop and electro in the early 80s, have been covered on black-oriented radio talk shows, in the hip hop media, and in black-oriented publications like Jet and The Root.
But the story has barely made a ripple in the mainstream — that is, white-dominated — media, with the notable exception of the New York Daily News, which has broken key elements of the story.
The details of the allegations are certainly troubling enough. Vulture — one of the handful of other outlets in the mainstream media to cover the story — sums up what we know so far:
Last month, Ronald Savage, a former New York State Democratic Committee member,accused Bambaataa of sexually abusing him in 1980, when Savage was 15 years old.
Since then, three more men have come forward with similar allegations: A man named Hassan Campbell told the New York Daily News that Bambaataa repeatedly sexually abused him when Campbell was 12 and 13, calling the DJ a “pervert” who “likes little boys.” Two other men whose identities were not fully disclosed also say Bambaataa abused them when they were minors — a former bodyguard also claims Bambaataa abused “hundreds” of young boys since the early 1970s. Bambaataa has denied all of the allegations.
[NOTE: The reference to the early 70s is puzzling. Elsewhere in the interview quoted in the NY Daily News, the apparent former bodyguard simply referred to “the 70s,” so I’m assuming he was misspeaking when referring to the early 70s. Bambaataa was born in 1957; he started his career as a DJ in 1977.]
The leaders of the Universal Zulu Nation, a sort of hip-hop advocacy group that Bambaataa founded in the 80s, first responded to the allegations by dismissing Savage, the first accuser to step forward, as “mentally challenged,” and denouncing the Daily News as a propaganda organ “compromised and controlled by U.S. government intelligence.”
But on Friday the group reversed itself, issuing a statement announcing that
ALL accused parties and those accused of covering up the current allegations of child molestation have been removed and have stepped down from their current positions.
If the allegations against Bambaataa are true — especially those coming from the man who says he was the hip hop producer’s former bodyguard — we’re talking about abuse on a Jimmy Savile scale. So why isn’t this story getting written about in the New York Times or talked about on CNN? Because the alleged victims were black boys? Because white people see Bambaataa more as a one hit wonder than a cultural icon?
Maybe Hannibal Buress needs to start talking about Bambaataa in his standup. That might get this story the attention it deserves.
Every time I hear a story like this, my heart crumbles.
Me, too. Wagner’s music is glorious. The man himself was very much the opposite.
This is horrifying and disappointing news. My heart goes out to his victims who, as others have said, will likely be largely ignored due to being male. It’s always disappointing to find out that someone influential and important to art in some way turned out to be someone who violated others.
Besides, if it weren’t for Wagner, we wouldn’t have Jim Steinman!
One reason male victims don’t come forward is out of fear people will assume them more likely to be offenders themselves as a result of the psychological impact of abuse, particularly if it occurred in early childhood. I have to admit I hadn’t heard of Bambaataa, but if he’s revered as a kind of creative icon, as opposed to a b-grade UK broadcaster such as Jimmy Savile, then that would have made it that much more difficult to come forward.
Very, very sadly true.
“Time Zone – World Destruction” recently some renewed attention from being on Mr. Robot. (At least the version with John Lydon- not sure if that is the only one?) Before that I don’t think I’ve encountered that song in the wild for decades.
It’s not that I hate the song now, but this definitely makes it not fun to hear.
Also props to victims. I hope they have lots of support. And someone to deal with their social media accounts.
Wow, what a piece of trash. I hope the victims get the help they need. Whether female or male, the victims should always come first. Fuck these predators and the people who defend them.
Then there’s Dee Barnes’ account of what went down between her and Dr. Dre:
Here’s What’s Missing from Straight Outta Compton: Me and the Other Women Dr. Dre Beat Up
http://gawker.com/heres-whats-missing-from-straight-outta-compton-me-and-1724735910
Dee Barnes is currently writing her memoir, Music, Myth, and Misogyny: Memoirs of a Female MC. She is looking for a publisher. You can follow her on Twitter, Instagram, and Facebook.
This is awful and frustrating. So many powerful people are able to get away with horrible things for too long (there was a similar case around here with film director Claude Jutra, although the abuse was brought to light after his death).
@SFHC:
Agreed.
This is truly the year of awfulness coming out in full force. I sincerely hope the hip hop movers and shakers won’t compromise their moral integrity in the face of notions of having their genre compromised.
Well this sucks. What the hell was about the 70s and 80s that allowed so many pedophiles get away with that shit.
And David is 100% right in that we won’t hear about this shit because American media doesn’t give a fuck about male rape victims or black people, and considering we have black male rape victims and a black male rapist, that equals roughly no fucks given.
Because it’s “intra community” violence, and the media doesn’t feel like that’s news apparently.
GiJoel. People have been getting away with a whole lot more for a whole lot longer.
When my kids were in primary school and the sex ed people came around, we had meetings with the presenters at the school. Mainly (I think) because they were using a new approach to deal with possible abuse. They’d abandoned the old “stranger danger” nonsense and were much more focused on keeping yourself safe, no secrets, understand your own feelings – sort of like a “Gift of Fear” for 8-10 year olds.
One really important thing they pointed out was the success of modern approaches to educating kids for child protection. Remember we’re talking 1990ish here. They had found in surveys during the 80s that men over 60 reported double the amount of childhood /teen sexual abuse that men under 30 reported. So this information was relevant to sexually predatory activity from the 1920s right through to the early 70s.
Depressing when you think about it.
@PI
It seems like the online news media outlets are the only ones who are covering this. I can’t say the same for old media, I just did a quick google search and I don’t see much of anything regarding this incident.
OoglyBoggles: Someone has to.
I just personally think that mainstream media isn’t doing its fucking job when I get all my news from social media or other online sources like this blog.
No offense David, but you aren’t exactly a media powerhouse. 😛
@PI
When the majority of TV viewers don’t trust old media combined with the decline of TV watchers, I’m still surprised they are even still around. I honestly believe that the much better media is in new media, they seem to actually do their jobs and press the questions. But my low opinions of television news is for another day.
Yeah I’ll be honest, David is to me around b to c list in internet media influence. Known well enough by anyone who is in the know, but outside you’re not going to hear David’s name on the tele about the rising extremes in right wing sexist bigots.
@ Bryce
One of the issues in the Savile case was that during the 70s and 80s he was pretty much the king of television here in the UK. It was his perceived importance and influence that made him virtually untouchable even though it was ‘common knowledge’ that something was not right about him.
Ironically one of the few people who went public about Savile was John Lydon, who of course worked with Bambaataa. That leads me to believe that there were at least no rumours floating around about bambaataa, otherwise I’m sure John Lyndon would have said something.
Media apartheid.
@SFHC
All media is equal, but some media are more equal than others.
I recall talking to a couple friends who grew up with The Cos on TV, really enjoying his comedy. Neither of them can laugh at his work anymore. It’s not a matter of the quality of his work having changed. It’s just been tainted.
I don’t know why it is – maybe because he’s not on screen – but I don’t have that problem with Roman Polanski’s work. I really enjoy some of his films and for whatever reason don’t feel they’re tainted by his wretchedness. Don’t get me wrong – I wouldn’t spend any money on his work. He’s a terrible person who should be shunned from the public sphere. I just don’t have that sinking, “uhg” feeling when his work comes on screen that others have when they see Bill Cosby’s face now.
As for this particular case? The Manosphere would capitalise on this only if the perpetrator were female. They’d LOVE that.
@POM I totally agree. For me the art does become tainted. I can’t enjoy art that’s come from such a terrible person. Polanski is a good example of this but in a different way that others say. I saw two of his films before I knew who he was, both featured rape and trauma as a result of sexual assault. The absolute arrogance of that man making those films whole not giving any kind of shit about real victims makes me so angry. I can’t separate the art from the artist because to me art always contains some of the artist. A rapist making films about rape victims is inexcusably disgusting.
Also I agree, no one ever talks about separating art and artists until they turn out to be gross people.
@David
Will there be a new open thread soon? 1 month since the last one, I think.
I’ll echo a few others and say that I think that the 70s/80s were only exceptional in that they were an intersection in time.
Before that, this abuse occurred and was both actively and passively “not talked about” – it was “just something that happened”, often hushed up as a shameful secret amongst those in a close community.
During, victims began to speak out and realize that their “shameful secret” didn’t have to stay so, that this was more widespread than just them and their abusers. Abusers – some of whom may not have realized the extent of the damage brought about by their actions, some of whom did and didn’t care – began to (rightly) be outed and shamed. Victims began to be encouraged to come forward, began to be told that they had done no wrong. (This, obviously, is not a mindset that has completely taken hold.) People began to talk about and process the abuse they had endured.
After, many of the older attitudes and norms persist at least in some quarters – abuse is still a shameful secret to some, especially when it involves close family members; victims are still blamed for leading on or encouraging abusers – but (in many, not all areas and many, not all communities) a critical mass of lack of acceptance of abuse has been reached. People are more likely to talk about it, enough so that (1) some of those who have been abused have gotten enough help to not themselves become abusers, (2) perhaps some who may have become abusers were not abused themselves, thereby breaking the cycle, (3) those who abuse are generally more careful.
There may also be something about the 70s and 80s being when worldwide mass media began to really take off – information regarding scandals could travel, at least between “developed” areas.
It will prove interesting to see what happens with this in areas in which mass media – or, probably more accurately, connected media – is currently making inroads.
@bryce
Agree with Alan. Savile was certainly not a b grade celebrity. He was the 70’s and 80’s King of prime time, and had probably more power and connections than what even Simon Cowell has nowadays.
I think this story has a lot in common with Savile, a hugely successful and influential DJ preying on youngsters. Savile too, though you might not believe this had a huge influence on Hip Hop. He was the first DJ to use two decks back in the fifties, and the first to wear colourful sportswear, track suits and bling whilst smoking oversize cigars!