Essay 160

Start off the final Monday of the month with MultiCultClassics Minutes…

• Advertisers are so desperate to jump onto the hip-hop bandwagon, they’ve started signing up unknown, untested rappers as spokespersons. 16-year-old singer Chris Brown will work for Champs stores, Rhymefest hooked up with RCA and Rhianna teamed with Procter & Gamble. On the one hand, the efforts can be extremely cost-effective, as contracts won’t come with megabuck price tags. Additionally, it’s always cool to demonstrate being in touch with underground, upcoming artists. But it’s wild to think Procter & Gamble may be down with 21st century culture.

• A recent survey showed 50 percent of European citizens have mastered a second language. Wonder how many are fluent in Fa shizzle speak.

• In Japan, white storks were released from a park as part of a plan to let the endangered species return to the wild. How typical. The white storks get freedom and protection, but what about the minority storks?

• Gregory Rodriguez, a contributing editor to the Los Angeles Times, offered a compelling perspective about the future of New Orleans. Rodriguez recognizes the area will inevitably be rebuilt not by Gulf Coast residents; rather, Latino immigrants — particularly undocumented immigrants — will migrate to the area for the reconstruction efforts. Then they’ll wind up staying, recreating New Orleans into something closer to L.A. from an ethnic standpoint. The measures President Bush approved will make it all possible and probable. Wonder what Mexican President Vicente Fox will have to say, as his citizens will ultimately do the work that not even Blacks want to do in New Orleans.

• President Bush is under extraordinary pressure to nominate a woman or minority for the latest Supreme Court vacancy. Political analysts believe Bush could considerably help his party by selecting a Hispanic candidate. The perfect choice would be Carlos Mencia. Nobody makes more sense on today’s issues. Plus, he’s funny as hell.

• Looks like racial troubles at the University of Virginia (see Essay 151) have been simmering for quite some time. A survey conducted last year revealed 61 percent of the school’s White seniors — including students categorizing themselves as “other” — said race relations on campus were honky-dory. Oops, hunky-dory, that is. But only 29 percent of Black seniors felt it’s all good. The remaining 71 percent of Black seniors were probably busy avoiding cross burnings and hate crimes.