Lake Effect News has a feature on rapper TimBuckTu, who grew up among Uptown's gangs, went to Arai and Senn, and just graduated from U of I with a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering and aviation. He teaches physics and chemistry to fourth-graders at the Boys and Girls Club in Champaign in his spare time. Read his story, see his video, and find out what he credits for not becoming part of Uptown's gangs: The Real TimBuckTu.
Repeating myself:
ReplyDeleteAwesome.
Fantastic!. I wish more young kids and parents see inspiration in what TinBuckTu was able to accomplish.
ReplyDeleteDegree in aerospace engineering and teaching physics on the side, Awesome!
You choose your destiny in life.
He's available for hire to perform at neighborhood gigs and parties. If you're having a block party or something similar, keep him in mind. Not sure how to contact him, but I bet if you wrote to Lake Effect News, Lorraine could put you in touch with him.
ReplyDeleteAs smart as everyone says this guy is I was a bit taken back by the number of times he uses the "N" word in his song. Truthfully, I did not find his song as uplifting as the given resume. I didn't quite see the connection.
ReplyDeleteNeil - I don't think anyone should expect anyone else to be an angel in every aspect of their life. The fact that this kid made it out of Uptown with an engineering degree, to me, allows him the right to take some creative license with his music.
ReplyDeleteAs an aside, I am a teacher at one of the Uptown public elementary schools and feel as though there are so many good, smart kids from all walks of life in our schools. It's unfortunate that so often their accomplishments and abilities are passed over in favor of focusing on those who choose to be a menacing presence in the neighborhood rather than a positive one. It's great to see a story about one of these great Uptown kids!
OK, so using the "N" word is creative license? I don't expect anyone to be an angel but I am holding him to the same standards as I would anyone else. Certainly anyone else with an Aerospace Degree. I guess you do not? I find it to be a bit ignorant to throw the word around like that. Sorry.
ReplyDeleteI am not trying to put down his education or what he has accomplished. This is only a comment about the music I heard and how it reflects upon that.
To quote a line from Marin Luther King's "I have a dream" speech.
ReplyDelete"I have a dream that my four little children will one day live in a nation where they will not be judged by the color of their skin but by the content of their character."
He has excelled at his education. Using the "N" word doesn't seem to promote a positive side of his character.
Since we're quoting Dr. King now, i'll offer this (from his Beyond Vietnam speech):
ReplyDelete" As I have walked among the desperate, rejected and angry young men I have told them that Molotov cocktails and rifles would not solve their problems. I have tried to offer them my deepest compassion while maintaining my conviction that social change comes most meaningfully through nonviolent action...They asked if our own nation wasn't using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted. Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today -- my own government. For the sake of those boys, for the sake of this government, for the sake of hundreds of thousands trembling under our violence, I cannot be silent."
This Uptown Rapper did somthing good and positive. First off, he figured out that gangbanging wasn't the way to go. That's the first step.Then he went on to complete his education and obtained a degree.
ReplyDeleteI give this young,black man lots of credit because not everyone has what it takes to graduate. I'm not talking about just school, I'm talking about life.....
We need more of his kind to uplift our youth. The weak shall be left by the waste side.......
Thank you Ron for directing me to Dr King's speech about the Vietnam War and its effects on the civil rights movement of the 60s.
ReplyDeleteSo what's your point Ron? Until there's unversal peace we shouldn't address the crime and violence in our community? I read the speech in its entirety. Dr King didn't say that inner city violence was to be ignored, excused, or encouraged.
Dr King advocated humility acknowledging his limited knowledge, perspective and experience to wit " We must speak with all the humility that is appropriate to our limited vision, but we must speak."
Dr King was speaking to a specific audience about a specific topic. He was not speaking about rappers, the n-word and its affect on a community.
Bradley,
ReplyDeleteread this again from Dr. King, do you really not see the present day relevance? If not then we have a very different sense of history and prespective on current events:
"They asked if our own nation wasn't using massive doses of violence to solve its problems, to bring about the changes it wanted. Their questions hit home, and I knew that I could never again raise my voice against the violence of the oppressed in the ghettos without having first spoken clearly to the greatest purveyor of violence in the world today -- my own government."
the point is to recognize how much violence is ingrained in our culture from the way our government acts in other parts of the world, how our corporations act, how our police treat vulnerable people in society and yes, how many young men on the streets act.
we need to realize that when a young man shoots a gun off at someone he doesn't like or when a gang is battling over drug turf it is in line with much of the history of this country and the economic system that we try to bring to every part of the world. this is what Dr. King was saying.
I'm not saying to ignore the street violence (i've tried to encourage many young people to not get involved in it) but also realize the other pressures at play against many young people and speak out against them too. speak/act out against the violence that many of us benefit from in the short-term, like buying cheap products made under unsafe and unfair conditions and the overthrow of democratic governments so that we can install a regime that eliminates/reduces regulations on our corporations. and we also shouldn't work for companies that do those things!
to focus soley on the misdeeds of young people on the streets while ignoring the larger spectrum of violence that we all contribute to is hypocritical, and UNPRODUCTIVE. and believe me, young people have more sense than many people who post on this blog and they see that hypocrisy.
furthermore, when we see the reality of the situation we can see that street violence will not be stopped by having more police on the street and having them act more aggressively. it will not be solved by locking more people up for drugs or by putting more cameras up. it's much deeper than that and requires changing the economic system we have and changing the value system we have. as dr. king said, we need to change from a "thing-oriented society" to a "person-oriented society." Not easy at all, and how we make that change i don't know; but it is clear that it needs to happen.
Short answer Ron..."No."
ReplyDeleteHow old were you when the Kennedys were shot? Dr. King? Do you remember Kent State? The '68 Democratic convention here in Chicago? Selma? It was a very different time. Unlike you, evidently, I respect Dr King as a man. I don't worship him as an omniscient deity. I don't consider every statement he uttered infallible. He was entitled to his opinion, as are you. I believe the pervasive violence must be countered at the beginning, locally and at a young age.
To tie this back to the topic at hand...I had difficulty understanding the poetry but I could clearly hear the n-word, a la Chicago politics "Vote early; vote often.", and it didn't strike me as being said in the manner of negative word appropriation of yore.
the point is to recognize how much violence is ingrained in our culture from the way our government acts in other parts of the world
ReplyDeleteWhat?
Are you telling me that kids around here are picking up bottles, sticks, axes and pistols because US troops are in Afghanistan?
Oh, wait - you are. My bad:
we need to realize that when a young man shoots a gun off at someone he doesn't like or when a gang is battling over drug turf it is in line with much of the history of this country and the economic system that we try to bring to every part of the world.
Dude.
Really?
So, street violence didn't exist until after the US came into being?
Puh-lease.
Violence is in line with much of the history of .... man.
Not a result of capitolism.
Replace capitolism with any other "-ism", and you're still going to see people strike out against that system, and against other men,.
Seriously, are you trying to sell the fact that street violence doesn't occur in socialist countries?
Cuz, if you are, you're sorely mistaken, my friend.
Besides, the inherent goal of any "-ism" is to self-propogate and spread across the world.
Communism. Socialism. Islamism. Name one, any one, and the goal is still the same.
And the violent tactics to attain such a goal are the same as well.
Look at any socialist country - and what's the one thing on top of their priority list?
Yep. Military power.
So, how does that differ between the us and them?
Even you are advocating that socialism take over the world ... who the heck are you to declare that to be the best "-ism", based strictly on the words of a man who wasn't actually advocating what you think he was, to the extent that it is convenient to your argument?
when we see the reality of the situation we can see that street violence will not be stopped by having more police on the street and having them act more aggressively. it will not be solved by locking more people up for drugs or by putting more cameras up.
Agreed.
it's much deeper than that and requires changing the economic system
In a word: bullsh1t.
Even if King did call for a democratic-socialism (which is under much discussion among scholars), that doesn't mean he was right about it, or that we should blindly follow what he said.
And, if you're saying that the only solution to street violence is to completely overhaul our entire system of government - you're nuts, man.
Or, just ignorant of history.
Take your pick.
A major problem with the youth who committ violent acts isn't that we've got troops in Afghanistan, it's that these kids can't find Afghanistan on a flippin' map.