MAY 28 • 2020 | 81
and Snoop Dogg to Jay-Z.
Following the murders
of Tupac Shakur and The
Notorious B.I.G. in 1996 and
1997, Farrakhan facilitated
truces between other hip-hop
artists. In 2001, Farrakhan
gave the keynote address
at the Hip-Hop Summit in
New York.
In addition, Fruit of
Islam, NOI’
s paramilitary
arm, have been known to
guard black residents of dan-
gerous, crime-laden neigh-
borhoods. One resident of
D.C.
’
s “Wicked District” of the
’
60s told The Atlantic in 2018,
“I will never forget how they
calmed the fears of so many
mothers and children, just by
their mere presence.
”
For many in the black com-
munity, NOI was a protective
presence, reducing crime and
keeping families safe. It’
s an
entirely different frame of refer-
ence from ours.
The speech Electronica sam-
ples nods to themes of black
empowerment. It’
s a common
theme on the album and in hip-
hop in general.
Andrew: I don’
t think
Electronica’
s album, and his
monumental talent, can be
written off because of his ties to
the NOI. But I’
m troubled by
the provocations. I don’
t know
how you celebrate someone like
Farrakhan without hinting that
you, too, might share his most
reprehensible views.
When Peter Rosenberg, a
Jewish DJ who co-hosts the
hip-hop radio show Ebro in the
Morning, criticized Electronica
for the lyrics, the artist lashed
out. “We are willing to hold
a discussion in a PUBLIC
FORUM on The Synagogue
of Satan and its meaning with
any Scholars of Theology you
would like to bring,
” Electronica
tweeted at
Rosenberg, adding a profane
acronym before later deleting
the message. That seems like
anger from either being misin-
terpreted … or called out.
(Still, I’
d personally welcome
a public discussion on the topic
in the right setting.)
What are your final thoughts
on A Written Testimony? How
should Jews respond to it?
Reisa: I find Electronica’
s
overall message to be pro-black,
and he often employs pro-
Islamic sentiments to that end;
there’
s nothing innately anti-Se-
mitic about either. But the red
flags being raised are valid, and
hateful sentiments should abso-
lutely be condemned.
It’
s important to recognize
just how disparate many of our
experiences as American Jews
are to Electronica’
s and the
majority of the black American
community he is addressing.
I think this is an opportuni-
ty to better understand each
other’
s cultural sensitivities.
Electronica’
s an immensely tal-
ented artist, and I do hope he
can find a way to engage in a
thoughtful dialogue on this.
For now, as a someone whose
ancestors were no strangers to
oppression, and whose people
are the subject of stereotypes,
scapegoating and prejudice to
this day, I find there is much
more on the album to relate to
than there is to take issue with.
p
tweeted at
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