Just how much do we construct?

Tonight in my Culture Theory class we watched part of a documentary film by a former African-American football hero that tried to make sense of the projection of violence into the male persona of the typical Hip-Hop star. Exemplars included Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. both of whom were publicly shot down. Beyond Beats and Rhymes by Byron Hurt is often a painful experience; one that delves into the construction of a violent masculinity nurtured in the inner city ghettos of the American northeast. What I saw of the film left me burdened with a sense of despair and sadness.

Then I came home and while surfing channels I happened across Drumline and I rediscovered hope. The irony is so rich it threatens to overwhelm me. The story of despair emanates from the North which overthrew slavery while the story filled with hope is situated in Atlanta, Georgia in the heart of the former Confederacy that enslaved Blacks.

We all construct our reality. In the end, which one is closer to perfection?