Abstract

The Gangsta and the Diva

In this article, the author focuses on the controversial issue of musculinity and feminism in commercial media, especially in television programs. In a recent event, elders of the Daytona Beach City, Florida, refused to play this year to MTV's "Spring Break," a weeklong televised spree of lascivious beach games organized around live musical interludes. A year earlier, they had taken offense at the hedonistic goings-on during the event in their town, including the now-famous drag queen RuPaul's fierce performance. The mostly white college jock audience responded with seriously muted applause. A major part of the women's movement has been devoted to arguing this much about femininity. This is not to say that sexism and homophobia should be accepted as part of the "diversity" of masculine culture. But it cannot be expected to eliminate these powerful masculine legacies simply by denouncing their most powerless manifestations, as in rap lyrics, in the name of moral hygiene, least of all when the offenders represent some of the most economically marginalized sectors of the population.