Crip Walking - Compton dance or a celebration of gang violence? r/gifs debates.
Kendrick Lamar performed at this year's Super Bowl halftime show, and during "Not Like Us", Serena Williams made a surprise guest appearance. For context, Williams dated Drake for a time who went after her during his and Lamar's beef, which "Not Like Us" is part of. During her appearance she "Crip walked", which is a popular dance that was originally created by the Crips gang in Compton.
This has some people upset because they see performing the dance as a celebration of the Crips, which is especially controversial because Serena's half-sister Yetunde Price was killed by two Crips members in a drive-by. However, others say that the Crip walk is a representation of Compton culture where Serena and Lamar are from, separate from its ties to the gang itself.
These sides came to a clash in r/gifs when someone posted a gif of Serena doing the dance
Now to the drama:
I think it's important to note that both gangs are different than the Crips and Bloods of the early 90's and before. The Crips formed in 1969 as a response to systemic racism and as a protective group for black communities.
I see we’re at the making the crips wholesome and it was all the states fault stage now.
if you're asking why Kendrick or Serena are decked out in blue colors and representing the Crips, it's not because they want to represent thieves and murderers, they want to represent where they grew up.
And also represent the gang that killed her sister
This is the whitest thing I’ve ever read.
How?
Because that is not what this moment in the halftime show is about. Imagine the entirety of the Drake/Lamar feud getting pushed to the side to assert that this dance move is a controversial glorification of gang violence.
There's only controversy because many American whites don't understand the effect of alienation on American blacks such that group creates culture in the form of music (jazz, rap, hip hop), dance (the crip walk), and language. People like the crip walk because it is good dancing...that's it. The only reason it is connected back to gangs nowadays is because white people can't tease the name from the actual dance.
It's okay a Crip, former sex trafficker and alleged murderer was spokesperson for anti-hate commercials.
She’s not celebrating what killed her sister. The Crip walk, which is the most common name but can really just be called the Walk as well, has turned to becoming a celebration and showing of love for Compton. This is also furthered by the fact that for years upon years now Kendrick has preached for unity between the gangs. It’s almost a “Around Kendrick, it’s about love”.
Smells like bullshit.
People are out here praising this. Kids watch the Superbowl. Let's normalize gang dances. The whole show was capitalistic decadence.
It’s the name of a dance bro. But like keep randomly shitting on black people it’s a good look.
stop supporting violent gangs (the crip walk)
It's about more than just the gangs, it's about representing Los Angeles, and black culture in Los Angeles. Whether it's involving gangs or not, it's a form of expression, it's art
Its a Gang sign. its showing support for a gang. the same gang that killed her sister. its disgusting
It's about more than just the Civil War, it's about representing the South, and Southern culture in America. Whether it's involving the civil war or not, it's a form of expression, it's art. This argument did not fly with the Confederate flag, it shouldn't fly with gangs either. Representing something with a terrible history and calling it culture doesn't make it ok.
That’s not art, far from it. It’s idiocracy!
I’d tried to use the as an explanation when I was cause wanking in public. It’s just how I express myself, so ignorant.
Yeah, I can’t accept this. It’s the same as saying “Swastikas are more than just Nazis, it’s a symbol of peace” to excuse a skinhead on stage with swastika tattoos. The crip walk is first and foremost associated with a dangerous gang which has killed people in the tens of thousands, possibly even the hundreds of thousands over its time.
It was a dance they did in celebration of killing rival gang members. They were the original Fortnite emoters, but truly diabolical since these were real ppl they killed
- I agree it’s a little weird that we’ve come to normalize crip walking on TV. There’s millions of families and kids watching this from around the globe and we really want to show them a gang related dance? Is this what we want the world to correlate black Americans with? Not showing real african culture, leaders in the community, or great achievements?
Also, while gangs are scary and dangerous to a lot of parts of the population, in other parts the gangs have their family in it
Her sister was killed by the crips you know that right? Gangs are first and foremost about power through violence. Always have been, always will be.
Speaking of family, the crips murdered her sister. And she still reps them.
They were already representing the military, so why not the crips too?
Hood/thug culture is inherently stupid.