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EDITORIAL

Racism on steroids?

Published Jan 27, 2008 9:14 PM

The witch hunt against people using steroids—most vehemently targeted against people of color—has extended itself to the entertainment industry. News reports announced on Jan. 14 that several entertainers, including hip-hop stars 50 Cent, Wyclef Jean and Timbaland; R&B artist Mary J. Blige; and movie producer Tyler Perry, were cited in an investigation of steroid use.

Notice that every single one of the entertainers mentioned is Black. They are not suspects in the investigation, the papers report, as the investigation is focused on the distribution of steroids and not the use. However, these reports have subjected them to the court of public scrutiny.

Everyone knows that drugs flourish in the entertainment industry, yet there is a double standard in the corporate media when it comes to talking about white performers and Black performers, just as there is a double standard when it comes to white music and Black music.

When white performers spew sexist language, record misogynistic music videos and glamorize the “fast life” of drugs and music, they receive pats on the back. If Black artists do it—under record labels owned by corporations that decide exactly what will reach the airwaves—they and an entire genre of music and its performers are demonized as bad role models.

When white performers use a long list of illegal drugs, it’s supposedly part of the glamour of the job. But now these Black performers are listed in a criminal investigation. Where’s the investigation of cocaine and heroin distribution? The names that would come up would come not only from the entertainment industry, but Wall Street boardrooms as well.

Drug use is rampant and completely understandable in a capitalist society that exhaustively exploits workers—including athletes and artists—and forces them to compete against one another day in and day out. The enforcement by the capitalist state of drug laws, with little to no emphasis on rehabilitation, always serves to criminalize and denigrate people of color.