Very enlightening … glad you posted it … keep them coming ..people need to see whats going on!

I commend DeDe on her information in such a society now were we have forgotten where OUR Black Heritage has come from. Yes, we are a lost people all over again and we don’t even see the forest for the trees. We do need to wake up and stop exploiting ourselves these days just because it is “THE THING TO DO”. But as long as “SEX SELLS” we use what we have so that we can eat. “Get Educated” that works too.

@49: ALI: I understand where you are coming from but you can’t give someone something that you don’t have for yourself. I’m all for everybody loving everybody, but until black people love and respect themselves FIRST how can we have any love and respect to give to others.

It reminds me of the person who is always taking care of others while their life is falling apart. Sometimes you have to stop, get yourself together, so you can give and take care of others.

It’s been this way with blacks every since we came here. It’s always been about putting “others” welfare before our own. And the few times we have tried to put ourselves first, we get accused of being racists and are made to feel guilty about wanting to love ourselves first. Every other racial/ethnic group has no problems looking after their “own” first, “others” second. They are respected for it.

I think its important to learn about black history throughout your life, not just February of every year, so props to CL for this post.

However….I have to respectfully disagree with the argument made in the video that black women have turned into “america’s whore”. I don’t believe our history negates the fact that women of all colors and races degrade themselves in the same manner. To play devil’s advocate, I think if we had the other extreme, where black women aren’t seen as sex objects at all, then in some way they would feel marginalized. I think you see some of that today, where women like Halle Berry go out of their way to been seen as “universal” sex symbols. Also, if you look at the black women in the video, you have to notice that the women are catering to a black male audience. Sarah was exploited by white people for a white audience. Video vixens may be a part of an image perpetuated by the (white) media, but they are almost exclusively for a hip hop (black) audience. I think that distinction is important. Maybe the video is arguing that this is how low we as african-americans have come, but like i said, I respectfully disagree. Women degrading themselves is manifestation of how low our society has come.

# 73 you are so right. Even after the Union soldiers declared slaves free some would stay on the plantation and work for free so not to leave Massa and the Missus. And the slaves who would leave were labeled as “deserters” and ungrateful. Now as this election looms white people are mad at blacks because we want to support our own. It is crazy how blacks are okay as long as we are killing each other, but when the white man smells solidarity he gets nervous.

I read about Sarah a coouple of months ago and I must say that I was disgraced. These are the kinds of stories that need to be told to our young ones. There are actually girls who aspire to be “models” instead of doctors, lawyers, or teachers or just a respectable career for that matter. All these video “models” and girls on the cover of glossy magazines, and showing their asses on myspace seem to be proud of the images that were put on display as a source of degradation to our ancestors. Are they not aware that they are being dehumanized by not only black men, but all men and respectable women alike. They are looked at as objects for men to manifest their sexual desires upon. Parents need to wake up and in still morals and values in their children, and teach them their worth. Life is not all about the fast dollar. Teach that education=empowerment and put an end to this vicious cycle.
OK I’ll step off my soapbox now.

Welcome #75. And I agree with 74. It seems that the white americans who run some of the media companies, have reached into our psychi and figured out how to keep us on a level of sex and eploitation through our women. Ask yourself what’s the future going to be like for the children of this world?

ABSOLUTELY WONDERFUL…great connection of origin of degrading to what is now a standard of beauty……….im inspired

This post makes me shameful for ever being jealous of a video vixen…real talk.

Wow this realy touched my heart. I will be showing this to my kids and young female and male family memebers

I am currently stationed in Europe. How disgusting those people were to do such a thing. I never knew of this story. I wonder why HMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMMM????

I’m glad I took a course on the Psychology of African American, I understood better on why African Americans act the way they do today. I feel sorry for them because the true African culture was stripped away and African Americans were reduced or belittled as waste. Look at what we eat and how we eat, we were given scraps and now we pride it as if it was a choice at hand. African American women are going through an epidemic right now, we accept being overweight as a norm of our culture. We fail to realize the things we put into our bodies actually destroy us. I recently found out that milk is not good for African Americans (vitamin D), why? We get enough vitamin D from the sun, our melon in our skin helps store those vitamins and when we drink milk we push and destroy our bodies. I feel sorry for what Mrs. Baartman had to endure because she was misled just like we are mislead on what’s good for us today.

**snapping my fingers* Thanks for teaching me something new today. Old folks always say there’s nothing new under the sun and apparently when it comes to appreciating and respecting a black woman’s body this is true. Black women demand RESPECT for yourselves and your image. BLACK MEN give your sisters, mothers, daughters the respect they deserve!

This is my first comment on ConcreteLoop, and this video was by far one of the most awe inspiring things that I’ve seen. I’ve been sitting and working with the kids in my community and we’re teaching them the importance of Womens history month and influential black women or moments inspired by the colored woman, and I honestly cannot wait to start a discussion with them on this.

Thank you very much………I check this site out everyday, and this has got to be my favorite post, because I’ve never even heard of this, and it is something that we all need to shed light on.

than you for posting this. im from south african and know this story too well. i didn’t think that you would take it there by equating her story to the story of the modern video vixen. i was thinking it the whole time.

it’s ironic how rappers as well as video vixens are doing the exact same thing that they did to saartjie. that era off booty shakin in the videos and the whole video vixen thing is really tired and BET needs to take responsiblilty do their part and stop airing that shit. but i guess the money is too good so we sell our souls

I HAVE TO GO TO WORK BUT I WILL RETURN TO THIS POST LATER ON

#75 AND 77 I AGREE WITH WHAT YOU GUYS WROTE!!!!

AND CL IS GETTING MORE AND MORE POSITIVE EVERY DAY AND THIS SETS A GREAT EXAMPLE

IM SO PROUD AND ANGEL YOU ARE BEING A GOOD LEADER

HAVE A GREAT DAY EVERYONE

@74:” I don’t believe our history negates the fact that women of all colors and races degrade themselves in the same manner.”
*************************************************************************************************

True. Women of all races and colors degrade themselves, however, black women tend to be the only group that suffers the negative effects of society for their behavior. What I mean is, when white women pose for Playboy, Maxim, Sports Illustrated, their bodies are seen as things of beauty. Something to be admired and worship. Something for all women to aspire to. Even though white men exploit their own women, they still cover and defend their womens reputation. They go to great lengths to make Playboy look like a piece of fine literature not something exploitative.

The video vixens on the other hand are on their own. The same white and black men who exploit them do NOTHING to defend their beauty or reputation. Their bodies are seen as strange objects to be analyzed and caricatured (like Saartje).

#87 Right on the money!

Let us not forget “Never get Far” by the Game.

All that ass shaking got the vixens nothing but painstaking ridicule in the hands of the same one they competed for to be in the video….

@87, I agree, and btw I’m glad people can take my point of view as simply a counterargument and not ignorance. That is what I meant when I said some women like Halle Berry and Beyonce go out of their way to be seen as universal sex symbols- because black women are often put at the bottom of the totem-pole.

We really needed this post.

Wow this is deep. Wake up Black Woman there is much more out there then music videos, and showing off your bodies. Wow thanks for posting this Concreteloop.

I posted a while ago I meant to put quite interesting and NOT cute.

Great job CL! Keep us informed. Black women were always looked upon as objects. This is not something that hip-hop started. We need to take a better look at our daughters, and think about what we are teaching them when we govern ourselves in a manner that’s not flattering.

thats whats up!

i canr even wtch it here at school i gotta go home

WOW THANK YOU FOR POSTING THAT…VERY INFORMATIVE

Concrete Loop editors: Excellent! Excellent post! I was in awe upon reading this article. I have never ever heard of this woman. I did hear of the “Freak Shows” in history how “misfits” with bearded women traveled the world. I also heard of exploitation of Africans. This documentary is painfully honest in the terms of what the 21st Century video vixens have resorted in exploiting thier butocks and hips for money and show. I thought of Buffy the Body after reading these post…

Woman need to become empowered. Stop “selling” your naked bodies for money.
Nothing has changed. video vixens accept money, cars, and diamonds in excahnge for the sweets and alcohol as was in Ms. Saartijie Baartman’s life. She was a captured slave. Most likely raped numerous times, enticed with drugs and alcohol. The “Sweets” that were mentioned was most likely opiates. As the Dutch is the most famous for their liberal use of drugs.

Ms. Saartijie Baartman’s did not have a choice. But we surely have choices…
I am appalled that video vixens and even some web pages have showed women showing their buttocks in swim wear and shorts. You are no different from the vixens. After countless videos and “MySpace” ads some of us are still resorting to these degrading theatrical shows that do nothing for us, but set us back hundreds of years…

i remember watchibng gloria velez i mean Video Honeys on like vh1 when it came out and i really liked sarah cu she was a vizen but she had like higher goals even Hype Williams was like yea ur billboard is HOT! and gloria velezew… ireally like her and melissa she was in thos emeetings she wants better pay

the other one was hot to she was the one in the photoshoot she was in a video for Jay Z called excuse me miss its really cliche how i relate like everything to Jay BUT I MEAN THATS WHAT I REMEMber her form real talk

I am a South African living in South Africa and I’m glad to see that this terrible part of our history is being spread,so that we can educate others.

The history of Sarah Baartman is something we learn in school,what has been omitted from this video is that Sarah was a slave and was forced to go to Europe.
The Khoi people in those days were used as slaves and labourers and were paid in sweets,beads and alcohol.So how does one not develope and addiction if that’s all you’re exposed to?

They were never given money therefore didn’t even understand the value of it.
My grandmother was Khoi,alot of Khoi women were raped by their ‘masters’ and ended up producing mixed off-spring,which in South Africa are refered to as Couloured people.

The worst part is that there are farmers in the Cape who still insist on paying farm employees in alchohol and are causing a huge problem.(Anyway that is totally off the topic).

Thank-you Concrerloop.Sara is finally at peace.

I am also 1 of the many on here who had never heard of Sarah Bartman (Saartjie Baartman). And I do learn something new everyday. This is very typical of the ignorance and chauvinistic ways of the very sexual European, they have always been known for there perverse ways. In those days many black woman were admired then hated for there voluptous curves but then when u look at Greek art they considered the meatier woman beautiful. But now in the millennium woman can go and get injected here and there to portray the same image they are not. The video vixen is doing only what she knows to try and get ahead but so are the Playboy Girls. Who is to say whats right in these days when anything and everything goes..

I can only try to understand what she endured and hold my head up everyday as all black woman should. This whole story was deep and her legend should live on, the first showcase of the black beauty misunderstood.

J Dakar I think your doing a good job reporting news and politics, it makes me visit this site more often because you report credible news stories. I still am shocked at the one about mud cookies. Keep up the good work CL !

Ben, ever heard of self expolitation? THAT’S what’s happening-their unfairly using themselves for the own wack (i.e. $$$) uses. It’s sad.

im so glad this kind of subject matter is gettin beyonce amount comments im proud of my people lol no but seriously this is beyond great j thanks for sharing this……..

i learned about this is my african american studies class…very very interesting. this takes it to a whole nother level tho! i love it…its speaks the TRUTH. kudos for the post CL.

It’s great when posts like this hit over 100 comments.

Thanks JD.

This was very informative. Thank you for this educational posting. I had no idea about this, wow.

It’s good to have a post spotlighting something like this, that directly scrutinizes the racism against the black woman in this day and age where most black women are more geared towards fitting into mainstream society than maintaining some type of order in their own community. Many sisters erroneously believe that racism either doesn’t exist anymore because they’ve been allowed into corporate America for the purposes of being sexually ogled or utilized as concubines by the caucasian executives.

@ #102 I so agreee with you…I am so overwhelmingly proud at the number of responses/ comments and happy that CL could bring something like this to fruition in terms of how some women conduct themselves today. Good Job!!

**also…EVERYONE I’VE ENJOYED READING EVERYONE’S COMMENTS…

I read a book about her and it said she had a disease that cause her butt to be so large. It’s a shame she was exploited.

This is why folks are having a problem with singers like Beyonce and lil kim and any black woman who exploits there bodies for profit. sure they make money but at what cost??? White women can be on “girls gone wild” have sex with the whole college campus and they will still be able to find a husband and spit out two or three babies and shop all day.. black women can’t afford to have this whorish image gloryfied. But what can we do?? turn our backs on the industry that is feeding us this nonsense?? When will we learn that they have got us right where they want us… its just a matter of time!!!

p.s.black men aren’t trying to save us…they are after snow white and dem.. Good LUck!!!

I heard about this a while back and I showed it to every woman in my life. Makes you think.

wow, this is deep. i never knew. my heart aches for the humilation she must have felt while everyone was looking and making fun of her. it almost forces us as black women to take a deeper look at who we really are and how we carry ourselves. thanks CL for the post.

This presentation should be mandatory in every single institution of learning, every house of worship and in every incarceration facility bar none.
And those of us who are aware of the ricks of our enemy/oppressors/exploiters need to man our posts and get on the job.
I love you all,
Scurv
“Amerikkka’s Most Outspoken Artist”
http://www.ScurvOriginalz.com

WOOOOOOOOOOOOW! THAT WAS THE BOMB AND VERY EDUCATIONAL! GOOD LOOKIN’ OUT CL.

first time , THANK YOU SOOOOO MUCH FOR THIS!!!!!!!! never knew

I never heard of this before. Another sad yet true moment in our history. We’ve gotta do better! Thanks CL for the post!

As long as Black women continue to volunteer to let themselves be exploited in such a manner, that ish will continue on especially through the hip hop community. We can’t always point our fingers at the artists and say “You’ve been a bad boy, shame on you!!” because these women seem to have no problem gyrating their hips and shaking their asses in front of the camera. It’s just as simple as that. I don’t feel sorry for these women because THEY CHOOSE to let themselves be viewed in such a way. And they wonder why they can’t get respect? Look at you, your ass is practically pouring out of your skimpy clothes and you’re making your ass clap for a million people to see. And you want me to do what? Yeah right.

It’s also funny how some of these “models” floating around the internet are demanding for respect and to be looked upon as more than a piece of meat, yet they’re posing for trashy magazines like King and Smooth with barely anything on and their asses all in the camera. If you want respect and want to be looked at as an intelligent woman with morals then why don’t you try doing some tasteful modeling.

And for the people who will say, “Don’t knock their hustle, you don’t know their situation. They might have kids…” Blah blah, I’ve seen those comments come up so many times during discussions like these, you’re right, I don’t know many of the situations these women are in, but I garuntee you there’s a way to make money without degrading yourself or selling yourself short.

*gaurantee

ive read every post until nwo and i really like what im hearing and do appreciate CL Jdakar for puttting this up..Ive seen this viddy a while back, like last year..its on youtube and many havent even watched it

and i loved that comment about why black people dont need to drink milk..the last time i drank milk was when i was in grade 9 that shits no good 4 ya..(totally irrelevant but whatever)
GREAT POST! GREATLY APPRECIATED

Excellent video. It’s so amazing the way Dede correlates what happened back then to the way we can exploit ourselves or be exploited today…

wow. proud of u for posting this. u know we have come along way in fighting off these white folk and thier savage deeds towards us. i just wanna say to all black women be proud os your unique shape, ur fine ass, plump breats and neat waist. full lips and beautiful skin.
we got what them others got to pay for. please carry it with pride!

good post j. yall need to keep puttin stuff up like this about our history more often *thumbs up*

Evolution is false.Only 98% of what you read about evolution is true.What happen to the other 2%?Hasn’t been proven.Is which why scientist don’t believe in evolution.Because if you studied evolution you would know that it is just a theory when you study where mammals etc. came from.Aside from that

Women have a choice now, either to exploit their bodies.Nobody is gunning them down. But it does get to the point where what about the black women who work extremely hard because those women, including myself and others have a hard time trying to prove.

I never knew about this untill now mad props BLACK WOMEN are the best , and the world doesnt even know iit yet its a shame that we are being disrespected, and degraded, im SIICk of iit.

It is sad that some of us lost the message - #23 and others- I know now we have a choice- that wahat makes it sad - These people before did not have a choice - sarah for one and other actors in the past that had to play into stereotypes i.e hattie mcdaniel -amos and Andy - now today we have Flavor Flav (i hope I spelled it right because that all he cares about) and Angel ( dumb as video girl) are choosing to reaffirm the stereotypes- it’s sad - just because they hand us a little paper
With images like this on TV - showing the black men and women like this - Do you think Barack Obama will really be able to hold the highest office in the land- with images like this on TV -it’s no wonder so many people believe that Obama only saving grace is that he is half white-
Really people wake up

The only good thing I picked up from this video is that the black woman body now and then, was considered the epitome of feminity-They tried for all these year to make us feel ugly but infact white people eny our lips , breast, butts and hips- The whole victorian era of fashion for women (which was to represent feminity and virtue) was modeled after this black woman - that they mocked and scorned but secretley lusted after that is why we should no be ashamed of our bodies but find a better way to show our pride in ourselves then by being object in music videos for them to lust and objectify us as just body parts

I hope the so called music video vixens and video “whores” become inspired to represent themselves differently, after reading this story. Saartjie “Sarah” Baartman was forced to display her sexual organs. Don’t you see the white men in the photo standing there with goads and whips? Yet, in modern society, many black women take pride in shaking their NAKED asses on television. No wonder why many white men merely perceive us as vessels to hold their semen. Many of them don’t respect us in the workplace, nor do they respect us in many other professional realms of society.

I am a black woman, and, yes, I believe the more those video “whores ” choose to put to shame and disrespect their bodies in videos for disrespectful music, the more time it will take for black women to get 100% respect in the United State of America. We have another 300 years to go.

A bitch is a bitch and a hoe is a hoe! Doesnt matter which skincolor you got. Apologies to my true sisters

nobody forced the modern day vixens to do anything!!!! they do it out of free will and white people do it too so dont punish all of black america for what few of them do.

I’ve seen this video before and always found it to be very informative. More people need to see this. Black women need to stop degrading themselves in these videos and stop reaffirming negative stereotypes of black women (ie: oversexed is a popular one). Those women need to take control of their image.

It’s amazing the very thing that the racist whites mocked are the very things many of them spend millions of dollars on, such as having shapely round butts, full lips, etc. Black women have had those features forever and just now (in the past few years) whites are beginning to hop on the bandwagon. Notice how when a white person has one of those features, soon it’s looked at as something out of the ordinary or unique (take for example: Angelina Jolie’s full lips or J.LO’s famous booty). Hell, you have many whites buying those same features, take Ice-T’s wife Coco and Kim Kardashian for example. However it’s not the first time, many whites have stole from black cultures and claimed it as part of their own. Not trying to go off-topic but Let’s take a history lesson back into the 1950s, where many whites claim that Elvis Presley are rock pioneers completely ignoring the fact that he and other icons stole many ideas from the black culture (particularly blues).

Just my 2 cents.

speechless.

For those who are interested in this subject check Suzann Lori Parks’ play “Venus.” It’s a very interesting look at the cultural implications of this woman.

@127 co-sign

I just got a chance to watch the video that the sister put together and I have to say that it was very well done. I was amazed to hear her confess that the black woman has become the number 1 whore in the world (Amos 7:17). The only issue I have with what the sister was saying is that she doesn’t seem to realize that the change has to start with the black men if she sincerely wants order to be restored. There’s so much confusion, in my opinion, because people want things to change but they still want to exalt themselves. The sister tried to mingle some of her black feminism into the video which only weighed it down, once again, in my opinion.

The reason why so many black men are so disrespectful to the black woman is because the black woman has been put above him by the white man as a destructive reward for her whoredom. Since brothers’ minds are not trained, they lash out. The proof of this is that the massive disrespect of the black woman from the black man has only been outwardly prevalent since approximately 15 years after the white man’s civil rights movement. The intent the whole time was to eventually empower the black woman and the homosexual over the heterosexual black male. The black man has been x’ed out of the family structure, so now the black boys have no male figure to learn from and the black girls have no model for what a good man is. This can only lead to antagonism between the sexes. Many sisters know this but will not admit it because they want to maintain the power that has been given to them by the white man over the black man.

To show you the true depravity of these caucasians, they cut the woman’s vagina out and put it in a museum for display. Similar to how they would cut off the black man’s penis and scrotum when he got lynched and put it in his mouth before hanging him. Or how the conquistadors would line up the Native American women, slice off one breast, and feed it to the dogs. Quiet as kept, they have all of our true history and records in their museums and institutes throughout Europe, as well as the histories of the other races. That’s what imperialism was about: eradicating the cultures of the other races so that it would be easier to bend them to the New World Order, which has been in effect since World War I.

This is new to me also. I am a college student and just last night I read a story about Saartjie Baartman. I love how my Anthropology course coincides with Concrete Loop. Thanks for educating us on our history, this should continue throughout the year!

#3 I’ve read about her also and your comments echo what I’d say perfectly. Black are very far behind in their own history. Thanks J. Dakar for this, but please make posts like this all year to help bring the black race up to speed. No other site has been this smart to combine the pics, gossip, facts, politics and history all in one. I’m loving CL right now.

Wow. Great that you all posted this. I would never have known this information. It is a very insightful situation.

We are no different in regards to intelligence, motor skills, and internal make up just b/c we appear slightly different (though more similar) outside.

I don’t see many Black women in the video much anymore.It’s being taken over by Latinos and Caucasian women.You have so many Caucasians now posing in black magazines because of their bodies “built like a black woman.” We need to open our eyes because it’s not many black women doing those kind of things anymore.

wow. i learned so much for this…..
it makes me open up my eyes.

but im mad they put lil kim in it.
im sorry but thats my girl. l0l

i was deeply saddened by watching that video. i hope it opens the eyes of all black women today. but it probably wont. i have no words for how society treats black women. its just plain despicable

I’ve heard of her while randomly searching about Namibia and the Khoikhoi people…..a tragedy doesn’t even begin to describe what her life was like….EVERYONE SHOULD KNOW ABOUT HER………

Very interesting article and video! Thanks CL!

I was JUST reading about this!!! I get angry when I read this stuff.

It’s not surprising that not too many black people know about this event. We can not rely on our schools and especially our media to educate us about our history. We still need to pick up books and do the research necessary to educate oneself about our past. We have that responsibility individually. There are so many other things that have happened in our past that will help black america realize their worth and capabilities. I appreciate ConcreteLoop efforts in opening the eyes of our people.

agree with 7 & 8