The wonderful world of Hip Hop is a series of dichotomies. On the one hand there are very positive images that dot that particular cultural landscape. Some of these idea promote self-appreciation, knowing one's history, and even the love between a parent and child. With artists ranging from Common to Kanye West to Queen Latifah, Will Smith and Ice Cube, there have been many positive images portrayed on film and cd shown in the last few years. Unfortunately, for every positive portrayal shown in the genre, there are countless others who seem to have very little problem in the perpetuation of negative stereotypes in hip hop. With the songs and films that show everything from drug slinging to the mistreatment of women, one often wonders if this is, indeed, the feeling of such artists? Or if this is nothing more than putting out product that consumers want to buy?

The most famous example of a so-called negative Black stereotype in the media was that of Stepin' Fetchit. Lincoln Theodore Monroe Andrew Perry (May 30, 1902 - November 19, 1985) has been long denigrated as having been an actor who did the most to put a negative picture on Blacks in America. Through such films as Hearts in Dixie (1929), Zenobia (1939) and Show Boat (1929), Perry portrayed the image of the slow-talking, dim-witted Black man who often pretended ignorance to make his way through situations in mainstream America. This was, in actuality, a common tactic used dating back to the days of slavery in this country in which the captives were often able to outwit their captors. While he was not the first to portray this type of character on film, he has become synonymous with this caricature. Those who knew Perry, found him to be quite the opposite of his character. An articulate man, he once wrote a series of columns for a national Black-owned newspaper, The Chicago Defender.

In today's culture, the opposite stereotype is prevalent. The image of the young black man with baggy jeans hanging below his backside, a mouthful of gold or platinum and a curvaceous "bitch" on his arm is one that permeates the American psyche via music, film, and video. While it can be argued that this modern version of "Stepin Fetchit" is perpetuated solely to influence sales and gain "street credibility". The biggest difference, however, between this version of "Fetchit" and the original version is exactly who seems to be buying into that notion of Black life.

During his heyday, Perry received

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