Rapper Jasiri X’s New Video Calls Out This Election’s Silence on Poverty

Oct 30, 2012

Pittsburgh rapper Jasiri X new music video for the song "Don’t Forget About The Hood" looks at how issues about the poor and those living in poverty have been "forgotten" this election season. "See cause we broke they forget about the hood, So when you vote don’t forget about the hood," Jasiri X raps in the video directed by Emmai Alaquiva. "I ain’t telling folks don’t get up out the hood, just when you living good don’t forget about the hood." Jasiri X goes on look at other issues that are making headlines this election season, including the rate of deportations and new voter ID laws. He also wonders what happened to all of the energy and organizing that took place in the wake of the tragic murder of Trayvon Martin. "Do we remember Trayvon or is the pain gone, Do we remain strong or did we move way on, Remember when we all had pictures in our hoods, Did we forget about the hood," Jasiri X raps. Jasiri X’s comments about the role of poverty this election are not only the honest truth, he also utters the words that both President Obama and GOP presidential candidate Mitt Romney have avoided. After the first presidential debate last month, Colorlines.com’s Seth Freed Wessler wrote a story titled ["Near Silence on Poverty in the Presidential Debate,"](https://colorlines.com/archives/2012/10/near_silence_on_poverty_in_the_presidential_debate.html) that looked at how the words poor people, low income people, and poverty weren’t used at the debate. "In a presidential debate about the economy in this time of prolonged economic downturn and high poverty, the near eclipse of explicit talk of poverty and low-income Americans takes work," [Wessler wrote on October 4th. ](https://colorlines.com/archives/2012/10/near_silence_on_poverty_in_the_presidential_debate.html) "Both described the struggling middle-income Americans they’ve run into the on the campaign trail, but not poor folks. Obama offered that he’d like to build ‘ladders of opportunity into the middle class,’ but still, no talk of the people at the botton of those ladders," [Wessler went on to say. ](https://colorlines.com/archives/2012/10/near_silence_on_poverty_in_the_presidential_debate.html) Upworthy.com called "Don’t Forget About The Hood" the[ "most important song you’ll hear all year"](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zZvkFdDli3U), and "a remarkable music video." Hip-Hop journalist Davey D called it, ["an incredible song and video."](http://hiphopandpolitics.wordpress.com/2012/10/25/dear-president-obama-mitt-romney-dont-forget-about-the-hood/) Earlier this year, Jasiri X flipped Biggie Smalls’ "10 Crack Commandments" to the "10 Frisk Commandments," a song that offered 10 recommendations for those "who get harassed just walking down the street."