We really want to like this children’s book…but wait…
You’ve probably seen this Facebook ad come down your timeline. A video of a very cool children’s book featuring the dopest hip-hop artists from the 90’s, with Jay Z’s 99 Problemsplaying in the background, immediately catches anyone’s attention. Check it out here:
With really cool pastel caracature’s of all of our faves, this children’s book, “From A B to Jay Z” introducing kid’s to the best of what hip-hop has to offer is really a great idea! However, the internet, or should we say, #BlackTwitter is in somewhat of a kerfuffle today after learning about the creators of this really cool book.
Hol UP…
It started when someone asked, “Little Mr & Mrs Cheeky – Kids & Mum Clothing”, a vendor who was carrying this book, if the publication was created by a black person. This is when all hell broke loose on Twitter. The response to the question by the vendor, was in itself, questionable for sure, but it would only lead internet sleuths to search for more info on this hip-hop friendly company.
Have y’all seen this kids book called A B to Jay-Z? I asked was it black owned. Look at the response. Before I asked I knew the answer pic.twitter.com/c8r4Q8ole1
— Illuminaughty 🔻 (@sweetfacedinero) July 3, 2017
The Side Eye
The condescending answer from the vendor caused folks to really look in to who were the creators of this children’s book. Many were shocked at what they found. The book was created by an Australian woman who claims to be a lover of hip-hop. The book is also promoted by her husband to also claims to have an affinity for hip-hop, but something just doesn’t seem right.
Have y’all seen this kids book called A B to Jay-Z? I asked was it black owned. Look at the response. Before I asked I knew the answer pic.twitter.com/c8r4Q8ole1
— Illuminaughty 🔻 (@sweetfacedinero) July 3, 2017
Here’s the chick who would be making 💲 from this. god damn right people should know who is making $ from our culture. See: Kendall Kylie pic.twitter.com/tnfhQwUY1G
— Illuminaughty 🔻 (@sweetfacedinero) July 3, 2017
Oh, but wait….it gets worse…
#BlackTwitter dug up the Facebook page of the author’s husband, a guy named Danny Chiha, who posted pictures with friends posing in black face in 2008. The comments on this post include, “hahhahahahahaha yo niggas!! robby u definitely look sexier as a nigga!!“
(Note: Since this story has gone viral, the creators of this book are attempting to clean up their social media pages…however…screenshots are a bitch, aren’t they?)
(This post has also been removed from their Instagram page)
With all this talk about cultural appropriation, and blacks not making money from their culture when other cultures are able to make make millions from black culture, it is reaching a breaking point where many of had enough.
The creators of this book have already raised over $8000 with their Kickstarter campaign, where they state, “A B to Jay-Z is for the next generation of hood rats…
See, the problem that many have with this book is bigger than simply another instance of whites making money from black culture. What makes this book simply annoying is the mockery of black culture. It’s the black face images that blacks in America have had to fight since the inception of movies and television here in the U.S. that we see plastered across the pages of the creators. It is the obvious undertones of these new, millennial, Sambo-type references that simply makes the book annoying as f&ck.
Despite the fact that no one is really sure if they can legally use the images and likenesses seen in this book, the concept is still very cool. As of yesterday the book was sold out, meaning there are probably tons of blacks who’ve purchased this book for themselves or their kids.
Now there will be those who believe that the creators of A B to Jay-Z are Australian, so they may have a disconnect when it comes to racism and black imagery in America. That argument is completely ridiculous. Australia is the same place where the Prime Minister, Kevin Rudd, had to issue an apology to the Aboriginal people of this continent due to the murders, corruption, and mistreatment they have received for centuries. So to think that white Australians have a disconnect when it comes to racism is far from reality.
In the end, every consumer has a choice. However, as an African American consumer, it is our duty to make sure that our dollars stop ending up in the hands of those who do not genuinely respect us.
Syllabus Magazine, the Carolina’s source for Music, Culture and Fashion
