Saturday night there was a boxing match for the Welterweight title between fighters Floyd Mayweather and Zab Judah. The event was promoted by legendary promoters Bob Arum and Don King. Trying to drum up support for the Pay-Per-View event, the promoters labeled it some sort of "hip-hop summit." Allegedly, the "heavy-hitters" would be there including rapper Jay-Z. Well, hip-hop was on display at the fight as the event degenerated into a fight between opposing camps. Mayweather's camp was upset over a couple of illegal punches and jumped into the ring to be met by Judah's camp. Police had to come in to restore order. What an embarrassment. A violent sport like boxing promoting a violent culture in hip-hop leading to violent acts. The whole thing was so cynical because both promoters knew such a show with a hip-hop label to it only invites negativity and violence. Why not make it a jazz event? Because jazz culture is cultured and appealing to the gutter has become the way. The fight ended and Mayweather walked away with the win. Both fighters-pending an investigation-will walk away with the cash, too. But those who actually believe in a hip-hop culture walk away with nothing but bad manners and a good chance at a short life or jail time. The few who actually make any money off of this negative lifestyle basically have given up the lifestyle except to make money off of it. "P-Diddy" is a multi-millionaire living in exclusive areas throughout this world. Jay-Z? Same thing. And on and on. But the masses actually believe in the culture's value and come up very empty. It would be nice to see a sport like boxing actually try something different and promote a positive message. It may sound strange given what the sport is all about, but boxing has a history of people dressing up to go to see the fights as if they were going to a ballet. Why not have a jazz or rock night or even a night for teachers? Well, because negativity sells but so can a positive message. Plus, negativity always comes back to haunt. Give me positive as much as possible. |
