C. Delores Tucker: Campaigned Against Rap Lyrics

January 13, 2024
1 min read

C. Delores Tucker, Civil Rights Activist who also campaigned fervently against rap music

By Shola Adenekan

C. Delores Tucker was one of the most renowned civil rights activists in the turbulence racial tension that marked the 1950s and 60s America.

She was also a tireless advocate for rights of American women and marched alongside Martin Luther King Jnr in the memorable Selma to Montgomery march in 1965.

In the early 1990s, she brought her outspokenness into her campaign against profanity and misogyny in rap music. She gained the support of many in the American political establishment, including Tipper Gore, the wife of the then vice president.

A tall elegant woman, who spoke with a stirring cadence inherited from her clergy father, she was born Cynthia Delores Nottage on October 4, 1927, the 10th of eleven children.

Tucker first made her mark, aged 16, from the back of a truck when she led a protest against a Philadelphia hotel’s refusal to admit a group of visiting black athletes.

She attended Temple University and in 1951 married William Tucker, a real estate magnate.

In the 1960s she campaigned for black political candidates nationwide and rose to become the highest ranked black woman in US politics when she was made the secretary of state for Pennsylvania. She was also the first to hold such position.

During this period, her effort led to the passing of Equal Rights Amendments by many states, she also helped institute voter registration by mail and reducing the voting age to 18.

She rose to become a senior member of the Democratic Party, chairing the party’s Black Caucus for 11 years and she helped formed the party’s women wing.

Perhaps, Tucker’s biggest claim to fame was her campaign against gangsta rap music and the genre’s sexually explicit lyrics, which she said were misogynistic and threatened the moral foundation of the black community. She linked offensive rap music to black-on-black violence and called for more positive portrayal of the black community in the music industry.

She picketed music stores and at one point bought shares of Time-Warner stock and rose at the company’s 1995 annual general meeting to demand the company’s record executives read out the lyrics on rap records, which they declined.

Her vocal attacks offended many rappers, including the late Tupac Shakur who ridiculed her in one of his songs.

In retaliation, she sued the estate of the rap artiste after he was killed in 1996.

While her views won her support among the conservative right, her campaign caused intense debate among many African Americans, some of whom found her approach narrow-minded.

A recipient of numerous awards and honorary degrees, she is survived by her husband.

She died on October 12, 2005.

 

396 Comments

  1. Whoa! This blog looks exactly like my old one! It’s on a totally different
    topic but it has pretty much the same page layout and design. Wonderful choice of colors!

  2. تعمیر جک پارکینگ تهران نمایندگی تعمیر جک بازوی درب پارکینگ

    هر خدمتی که برای سرویس و نصب دربازکن‌های برقی نیاز داشته باشید، می‌توانید از اسپارد استفاده کنید.
    استفاده از درب باز کن اتوماتیک ( درب
    های پارکینگی ریموتی ) به زندگی
    شما آرامش و رفاه می بخشد و همچنین امنیت و حفاظت از
    ملک واموالتان را نیز به شما هدیه
    می دهد. لازم نیست که یک درب پارکینگی جدید بخرید تا بتوانید
    از مزایای اتوماسیون بهره
    ببرید. سیستم جک های برقی  جهت درب پارکینگها
    و منازل و… طراحی شده و در نصب و راه اندازی آن هیچ گونه نیازی به تغییر درب
    ساختمـان
    نبـوده ودر وضعیت فعلی آن قابل نصب است.

  3. Hello there, just became aware of your blog through
    Google, and found that it is really informative.
    I am going to watch out for brussels. I will appreciate if you continue this in future.
    Lots of people will be benefited from your writing. Cheers!

  4. Great goods from you, man. I have take into accout your
    stuff previous to and you’re simply too great. I actually like what you’ve received right here,
    certainly like what you are stating and the way by which you are saying it.
    You’re making it entertaining and you still take care of to keep it smart.

    I cant wait to learn far more from you. This is really a wonderful web site.

  5. I’m glad you found the content useful! Your insights on engaging in thoughtful dialogue and fostering relationships within a community are spot on. Meaningful interactions indeed play a crucial role in strengthening the community and encouraging more participation. Preliminary Conference Divorce New York Here’s a more structured version of your thoughts for a blog post:

  6. Pretty part of content. I simply stumbled upon your website and in accession capital to claim that I acquire in fact enjoyed account your blog posts. Any way I’ll be subscribing in your augment or even I fulfillment you get right of entry to consistently rapidly.
    토토사이트

  7. Wow that was strange. I just wrote an incredibly long comment but after I clicked submit my comment didn’t show up. Grrrr… well I’m not writing all that over again. Regardless, just wanted to say fantastic blog!

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published.

Previous Story

Ellen Kuzwayo: South Africa’s Women Rights Campaigner

Next Story

John Garang: Led the Struggle Against Genocide by the Sudanese Government

Latest from Blog

0

  From Asa to A. Phillip:  Nothing But a ‘Sigma’ Man by Mark Anthony Neal   With thanks to NewBlackMan (in Exile)

A virgin’s quest

A Short Story by Bunmi Fatoye-Matory Friday, June 28, 2024.   Somewhere in Rọ́lákẹ́’s childhood, she learned about Mercedes Benz, but not