You’s a Ho

Whenever pundits want to wax philosophical about hip-hop, they always look back to the Eighties with rose-colored retrospect and talk about Salt-n-Pepa, MC Lyte, and Queen Latifah. Now flip on Rap City and look for a strong female role model. Good luck. “We’re in the bling-bling phase, where it’s really about commodification. People might say Lil’ Kim is empowered, but she’s just re-creating male fantasies,” explains Dr. Dionne Stephens, associate professor of psychology at Florida International University. Tonight she will host a presentation titled Hip-Hop Honeys or Video Hos. “There’s a lot of psychological research out there that shows these images are negatively affecting female sexual behaviors,” Stephens explains. She offers assurance to those who accuse her of sipping too much haterade: “This is not an anti-hip-hop thing.” The educational discussion begins at 7:30 at the Women's Club of Coconut Grove. Admission costs ten dollars. Call 305-648-0899, or visit www.cultureinthecity.org.
Wed., Oct. 25