Found this link earlier tonight and quite enjoyed the work the photographer did to get this together.

http://todayspictures.slate.com/inmotion/simon/

This is a pretty interesting site. I find it fascinating to see this site discussing a seriously impoverished area of London expreriencing the same issues that are happening in the inner city areas of the US. Poverty looks the same in every overly developed and populated area around the world. Kids and young adults are not being raised these days but rather brought into the world and turned loose like animals no one wants to take responsibility for. Still , as good of points that the artist makes, manages to at a small point say that these kids are trying to emulate what they learn from the US gangster rappers. This is a problem that spans all impoverished / developed areas and I don't think it is fair to say it is exacerbated by the US influence. The urban music industry directly reflects what these kids truely see in their neighborhood. If you have been raised with generations of family teaching you this is the way to be and this is all you will have, of course it is going to be conveyed as normal and ok to you. This is a problem of people having children and not raising them. Allowing them to take over and then giving up on those children as they become adults. I don't think it is a US fault. At least it brings out to people untouched by poverty, what these kids are raised in. If it wasn't for urban music, most people would never know and really try NOT to know what was going on in poverty ridden areas. Aside from pointing a finger at the US as a fault for these kids and young adults' behavior, the photography and insite of this wesite was very much worth checking out. He really got in the neighborhood and got to know these kids over years time and earned their trust then conveyed it in a media form very much worth praise and notice.

I agree that it is a parenting issue but I wouldn't totally take the blame off the Gangsta culture that is very prevalent in some Hip hop. I think the problem is a bit of both. When a kid isn't getting good parenting and is drawn to this "gangsta" culture via their peers and the music they listen to, then one would have to blame all causes of the problem equally. I agree though that poor or non existent parenting is the root cause that gets the ball rolling but like I said other forces are also in play.

This isn't just an inner city problem in big cities, but in small towns as well. The parents are first and foremost at fault, but friends and other influences are also to blamem such as rap, especialy those promoting drugs.
Recently the small town of Shelbyville Indiana was on the Oprah show because of the dropout rate. Shelbyville is your average small town with one exception, a 1 in 3 dropout rate. 300 freshman go into high school there, but only 200 graduate, the 100 dropouts go to work making $15 an hour at local factories or do nothing but tske drugs and steal. Very few get the jobs though.
The worst part of it is this small town has a higher dropout raye than the states largest and poorest school district, Indianapolis Public Schools. Indiana has the highest dropout rate in the country...... sad but true.

JS

Js- you are right about your point regarding small towns, I am from a small midwest town called Danville Il and if you didn't go to college, the only way to get out was the military. Right now, that town is having the same problems. I agree that small towns are harder hit because the smaller population and lesser percentage of outlets lends more to poverty. Our town used to have an abundance of factories but they don't even have that anymore since the factories have all been moved to areas where the people work cheaper. My only issue with the site was the blame being partially laid on the US Urban culture. I don't know how old you are but I am old enough to remember that before rap, the problem was the English punk culture. Remember the movie Quadraphenia? Leels, I am not trying to leave you out. Have you ever heard of Sid Vicious , Sex Pistols, Ramones or Iggy Pop etc....? Those people are just a small percentage. They all promoted hard partying lifestyles, disrespecting parents, violence etc all the things the current hot thing known as Rap, are being blamed for youth misdirection now. ( or better yet, the movie A Clockwork Orange) But it is just that, the NEW thing. Every generation is going to have a musical genre where the current youth vents their frustration about how they are living. Other kids who don't even live that way are going to find a way to relate to justify behaving the same way. I think the total blame needs to be placed on the parents. Not a country or musical outlet but the fact that parents are responsible for birthing, nurturing, surrounding the child with the right environment and influence. If adults/young adults/teenagers don't think they can do that then they make condoms and other forms of birth control to keep children from comming ( there again if THEIR parents had directed them then....). There are always going to be contributing factors involved and as parents, it is our job to be sure that our kids are prepared to handle those factors when they come. Unfortunately, when they become teenagers is when we find out how good of parents we are. I enjoy about 50% of the Urban style music but I don't let my kids listen to most of it. Some is disturbing to me but I still listen and kind of feel sorry for the artist who has lived a life that makes them feel that way. I understand where they are comming from and it is a vent. When my kids are old enough to see it for what it is, it will be their choice to take it for face value. By then I hope they respect themselves to be able to listen and still live out their lives the way I hope I have shaped them to do.