Did this deserve to be banned?
 

Around a year or so ago this track was banned from UK television by OFCOM because it was judged to be racist.

I was listening to this today, and was thinking about whether it made any sense. Those who justify the ban said that if a white singer had made a similar track called "White Boys" it would have been vilified. In my opinion its possible, but I doubt it would have been banned. Should it really be necessary to protect people from hearing a young black man make a song wholly making positive comments about his own race?


Apologies for the capitalisation btw...

[quote]
[Bashy]
Look Straight Away,
No Long-Ting.
This Is Out To All The Black Boys Growing Up Yeah.
There's Bare Positive Black Boys Around You Makin Movements,
Makin Movements Towards Sucess.

(Verse 1)
[Bashy]
Look,
Its Like I Love It When I See Rich Black Men Like Diddy And Nelly,
But Was Even Happier When I See Dizzee Rascal Gettin Albums Or When He Gets His Face On The Telly.
Personally, When He Won His Mercury,
I Thought Well Done.
He's A Black Boy Whos Just Like Me So Like,
His Respect Is Due Certainly.
And When 679 Signed Kano,
I Dont Know Him,
But i Thought Ok Though,
That's Good For Him,
Another Black Boy That's Gonna Make Dough All Legal.
Hang Tight Lethal,
He Made 'Pow', and,
He Brought In A Few More Black People.
I Rate That Higly,
Thats Why, No Matter What We Had I Still Got To Shout Out Wiley.
He Built A Scene.
Amongst Us Black Young Boys He Built A Dream,
Like Mega-Man Did With So Solid.
To That Crew Right There We Owe Homage.
When They Won The Brits I Was Like Brapp,
Black Boys Up In This Bitch,
When I See Them Ball On The Pitch Im Like Brapp,
Black Boys Up In This Bitch Oh.

(Chorus)
[Bashy]
Black Boys, Black Boys,
Yeah We're All Black Boys,
And One Day We're Gonna Be Black Men,
And One Day We Might Have Black Boys And We Gotta Teach Them To Be Black Men. (repeat)

[Loick Essien]
Ooh Child, Things Are Gonna Get Easier, Ooh Child, Things Will Get Brighter.

(Verse 2)
[Bashy]
Yo Look,
No We Ain't Hooligans,
Just Young And Talented Nubians,
With Potential And Promise,
Inovative Young Masterminds Like Sean Wallis.
We Need Role Models,
So Youngers Know Are Sucess It Is.
Thats Why I Feel Boom Inside When I See A Black Man Like Tim Campbell Can Win The Apprentice.
But When Swiss Made Cry,
I Aint Gonna Lie I Could Of Cried.
Look What Happened To The Mother Land I Didn't Wanna See Blacks The Same As Another Man.
When I Heard That Line,
That Sent Tingles Down My Spine,
Shout Out All Them Ebony Dimes, Katie Pearl And Keisha White,
Miss Dynamite, Sadie, Dezza And Charde Hang
Tite Beverly Knight.
Black Diamonds What A Heavenly Sight,
Soon We'll Be Getting It Right.
See Themselves As Equal.
Big Up P.D.C And Northstar Coz There's Strength In Numbers.
When Your Black And Single You're Feeble,
Stick Toghether My Young Black People.

[Loick Essien]
Ooh Child, Things Are Gonna Get Easier, Ooh Child Things Will Get Brighter (repeat)

[Bashy]
And I Dont Want Anyone To Think I've Forgotten Them Yeah,
Coz I See All The Black Boys Striving Towards Sucess.
We All Need To Make Money Enitt.
Shout Out Sway,
Hang Tight Sincere, Flirta D,
Dun' Know All The Beef Innit.
Shout Out The Movement.
What's Poppin Magazine.
Shout Out All The Black Peeps And Big-Up Master Steps.
Hang Tite Trevor Nelson, Steve Sutherland.
R.I.P Dj Swing,
Lindon David Holden,
Big Up Shaun Wright-Phillips.
Shout Out All The Black Comedians.
Big Up Richard Blackwood, Hang Tite Kojo.
Hang Tite Paul Boatang.
MED's Like Darkus.
Shout Out All The Black Boys On Lock Down.
Keep Your Head High Mann.
All The Black Sons.
Know What Yeah Shout Out My Pups Man.
Positive Black Boys In My Life Yeah

No.

Sounds pretty positive to me.

not at all.

I do not agree that this is a racist song, and I definitely don't agree it should be banned from anywhere.

I do, however, agree that if a white person wrote a song along the same pretenses it would come off as, and be taken as, racist.

What Punk said

It's no "One in a Million" by GnR, that's for sure

It shouldn't be banned. It's not racist. It wants to be positive. I say it wants to be, because I don't think sending the message to young black boys that the only way to succeed is by becoming a big rap star or Basketball player or some other big break. Praise the guy that payed attention in school, went to community college and went from the underclass feeding a family on roughly 10k a year income to living in a nice home making 40-50k a year. That's success to me.

I concur.

I heard the song and after reading those lyrics, yeah, I'm rather glad it was banned, what a bad song ....

Banned for racism? Nope.

Banned for stringing a bunch of names together and calling it a song? You betcha! ;)

Excellent :thumbsup:!

Well, he shouts out Paul Boatang (a black MP) and Tim Campbell (who won the show The Apprentice) so it isnt all about hip hop and basketball

I'll give you Paul Boatang, but Winning a TV show is just as or more unlikely than being a rapper..

No speech should ever be banned.

~~~~~

Shouldn't have been banned, BUT a statement doesn't have to be negative to be racist. It would have to at least imply that one "race" was superior to another. From one end you could say that my race is the best, a positive statement, but still racist. ( I know it implies a negative for other races ) That being said this song does not seem to be racist, even in that context. This seems to be saying something along the lines of we can do it, if we stick together.

Why would it be racist if white people said this, is the question? Just because we are a majority, or because people really see whites as superior? Just wondering, because I would also think singing about white boys, and white community is a bit racist, and I'm not sure why I don't think blacks doing it is racist. Double standard?

I don't consciously think any race is superior, but I might still have racist tendencies. Nobody is perfect.

Just want to point out that this happened in the UK, so the Constitution has no bearing on it.