Bleaching Black Culture

From the birth of jazz to the evolution of hip hop; the advents of urban trends to transformative advances in technology, African Americans have played an integral role in molding American culture. Unfortunately, they tend not be the beneficiaries of their own innovation. BLEACHING BLACK CULTURE examines the continuum of America's black cultural appropriation and effects on the African American community.

The imprint of cultural theft has a long legacy, and this power of influence in music, sports, fashion and art translates into millions of dollars for our country. Cultural branding has not only helped to exploit the hip­hop community along with other forms of black art; it's managed to monetize black marginalization. Currently, the Rhythm and Blues Billboard chart, a genre developed for the African American voice, is dominated with the likes of Robin Thicke, Justin Bieber, and Adele. Perhaps it's easier to sell black art when it's masked in "white face." Yet the argument with the latter comes from the 2013 African American consumer report. It shows black buying power rising from its current astonishing $1 trillion level to a forecasted $1.3 trillion by 2017.