POSTED: 2:39 pm PDT September 30, 2006
OAKLAND -- "Hyphy" is a word infrequently uttered by those outside Bay Area youth culture; however, according to youth advocate Nicole Lee, Oakland police have become familiar with the word in the context of violence, prompting the cancellation of an anti-violence event that was to use the slang term in its name. Lee organized an anti-violence rally that was supposed to occur in Oakland today; however, according to Lee, the rally's cry, "Get Hyphy Against Violence," did not resonate well with police and on Friday afternoon, they cancelled it. Lee said the rally was sponsored by the city of Oakland and was a collaborative effort by Youth and Family Services and different youth agencies. She said police were notified weeks ago and that it was to include "a free barbeque, resource tables, (and) performances by youth artists" and was supposed to be "a positive thing for people to do during the day." "It's really sad it was cancelled because a lot of the youth had practiced for their performances and this was just another broken promise. You can only take so many broken promises before you start to give up hope," Lee said. "Young people came up with the name for the event," Lee said, it was supposed to create an environment where young people could be a part of a stop the violence movement. According to Lee, police were concerned and cancelled the festival because they felt "hyphy" was a charged word and they were concerned they would not have enough officers present to make sure the event was safe. The definition of the word "hyphy," made popular in songs like "Stupid Dumb and Hyphy" by Mistah Fab, is debatable. Mistah Fab's song features lyrics such as "we stay poppin' pills just to feel the thizz effect," which seemingly describes accounts of drug use. But Lee said Mistah Fab "talks about how hyphy is providing young people with an escape. It's about giving them a place where they can be hopeful and celebrate life." Lee's own interpretation of "hyphy's" definition is that the word "means life and energy, escape from hard times." "The idea was to reclaim that word, the young people who planned the rally wanted to speak to young people in a way that young people would listen," said Lee, who hopes to re-schedule the event at a later date.
OAKLAND -- "Hyphy" is a word infrequently uttered by those outside Bay Area youth culture; however, according to youth advocate Nicole Lee, Oakland police have become familiar with the word in the context of violence, prompting the cancellation of an anti-violence event that was to use the slang term in its name. Lee organized an anti-violence rally that was supposed to occur in Oakland today; however, according to Lee, the rally's cry, "Get Hyphy Against Violence," did not resonate well with police and on Friday afternoon, they cancelled it. Lee said the rally was sponsored by the city of Oakland and was a collaborative effort by Youth and Family Services and different youth agencies. She said police were notified weeks ago and that it was to include "a free barbeque, resource tables, (and) performances by youth artists" and was supposed to be "a positive thing for people to do during the day." "It's really sad it was cancelled because a lot of the youth had practiced for their performances and this was just another broken promise. You can only take so many broken promises before you start to give up hope," Lee said. "Young people came up with the name for the event," Lee said, it was supposed to create an environment where young people could be a part of a stop the violence movement. According to Lee, police were concerned and cancelled the festival because they felt "hyphy" was a charged word and they were concerned they would not have enough officers present to make sure the event was safe. The definition of the word "hyphy," made popular in songs like "Stupid Dumb and Hyphy" by Mistah Fab, is debatable. Mistah Fab's song features lyrics such as "we stay poppin' pills just to feel the thizz effect," which seemingly describes accounts of drug use. But Lee said Mistah Fab "talks about how hyphy is providing young people with an escape. It's about giving them a place where they can be hopeful and celebrate life." Lee's own interpretation of "hyphy's" definition is that the word "means life and energy, escape from hard times." "The idea was to reclaim that word, the young people who planned the rally wanted to speak to young people in a way that young people would listen," said Lee, who hopes to re-schedule the event at a later date.
