I gotta do 2 times more to get 4 times less.
But it’s cool ’cause I’m sharper in the end.
– In Women Colour

At a recent Engaging Music Presentation, a group of young adults and I were exploring how popular music could help us understand the experiences of other human beings better.   To illustrate this, I played a rap song called In Women Colour by Haviah Mighty, a 28 year-old female rapper who grew up in Toronto.

After the song finished, I asked what stood out.   One participant immediately raised his hand and said two words: “The profanity.”  He then crossed his arms and sat back.   I asked how many other participants found the profanity the only thing that stood out to them about the song.   About one third of the room raised their hands.  It appeared that many in the group were struggling to hear what Haviah Mighty had to say because of how she was saying it.

Rather than simply dismissing artists who use profanity, a more helpful conversation regarding explicit lyrics needs to be around the harm words cause.  In James 3:9 we read that “Sometimes [the tongue] praises our Lord and Father, and sometimes it curses those who have been made in the image of God.”   Our main concern should be how the words build up or tear down others.  And as harmful words are reclaimed and redeemed by those whom they have harmed, we must be careful we don’t condemn their use.   A word that some might use to curse others may be a word that Haviah Mighty is using to empower.

I’m reminded of the expert in religious law who questioned Jesus about eternal life.   After learning that he needed to love God with everything and loved his neighbour as himself, this law-abiding religious follower asked:  “And who is my neighbour?”  To answer this question, Jesus tells the surprising story of the good Samaritan (Luke 10:30-37).  We learn being a neighbour has nothing to do with looking good and keeping clean.  Through the story, Jesus highlights that any human is made in God’s image and therefore our neighbour.   I’m sure the religious leader was not expecting Jesus to identify the Samaritan and by extension even the Roman occupiers and other heathens as neighbours.

Jesus reminds us we all have the same Creator.   We are social creatures who crave to share our experiences, whether joyful or painful.   It hurts when our voice and experience is dismissed because of the way we look, talk or dress.    However, when we do find people who are interested in hearing about experiences, we feel understood and valued.   What’s more, often our courage to share our experience helps others who have gone through similar moments.   I believe many of the young adults would have found Haviah Mighty’s song quite encouraging if they hadn’t dismissed it because of the profanity.   She recalls her experience as a preteen girl who is told by a boy that she will never be as good as him because of her gender.   She expresses the anger, injustice and pain that she felt.  She also outlines how this experience has made her stronger many years later.  So if you are willing and able, In Women Colour is an excellent opportunity to learn about our neighbour Haviah Mighty.