Assignment 7- Campus Feature News

University Arkansas Little Rock professor makes students be sure of what rappers they are listening to, as well as being aware of the of the words that the rappers are saying because there are often many hidden lessons in a song. Professor Andre Douglass Pond Cummings gave a speech at the University Arkansas of Pine Bluff on Constitution Day. With experience and education about the law, Cummings expressed boldly how the U.S. Constitution is embedded with the beliefs of slavery, and some songs in hip hop proves it. Cummings explained the difference he experienced while growing up in California as a surfer of South Los Angeles, he stated how some of his friends were stopped because they weren’t the same skin color as his, as well as how he was treated more fairly than his friends who were a different race. He stated that growing up near South Central wasn’t hard for him, but it was hard for his friends who grew up in South Central.

"I love the constitution, but I don’t worship it” was what Cummings states during his speech. He discussed inequality issues in law enforcement by revealing a verse in the song “Trauma” by rap star, Meek Mill. He also used a verse from the song “Neighbors” by another rap star by the name of J Cole. Cummings challenged the students in the audience to identify with the verses, especially African American males. Cummings used each rap verse to expose inequality, racial profiling, and stereotypes. 

The professor expressed how he wouldn’t want his children to believe that the constitution serves justice when in reality it doesn’t, he feels that it justifies slavery in a sense but is sugarcoated. Being a law professor, Andre Cummings expressed that it was his task and duty to be sure that he educates student bodies about Black America and what the U.S. constitution means for them. The topic of the Constitution Day discussion was "Hip Hop and the Constitution". Cummings joined the law program at UALR in 2018, where he is now teaching entertainment law, corporate justice, the constitution, and hip hop which is why his scenarios were perfectly pointed out during his lecture.

Students that attended the lecture expressed how grateful they were for Professor Cummings to share such knowledge about the constitution and what it really stands for in America. Though Cummings only mentioned few rappers in his lecture, he made it clear to the student body that the injustice in America toward people of color are mentioned by thousands of rappers in their art and songs. Professor Cummings encouraged students to seek more education about Black America by listening to rappers such as Tupac, J. Cole, Jay-Z, Meek Mill, and a lot more artist to name. In conclusion of Andre Cummings speech, he encouraged all students to stay woke, and to continue their education so that they could excel in America to recreate Black America.

 
https://uapbnews.wordpress.com/2019/09/12/constitution-day-event-to-feature-ualr-law-professor/
https://ualr.edu/news/2019/09/16/bowen-professor-serves-as-constitution-day-speaker-at-uapb/
https://www.pbcommercial.com/news/20190916/uapb-constitution-day-to-feature-ualr-professor-sept-17
http://www.thevillagecelebration.com/how-hip-hop-artists-educate-black-america-on-the-u-s-constitution/