Institutional Racism in Kendrick Lamar's "To Pimp A Butterfly"

Seminar paper from the year 2019 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: 1,7, University of Wuppertal (Anglistik / Amerikanistik), course: African American Literature, language: English, abstract: This term paper tries to show that Kendrick Lamar, on his album "To Pimp A Butterfly", not only incorporates the concept of institutional racism but elaborates on it, offering a different approach to the issue. By using the example of the ghetto, he uses an unconventional idea of what can be defined as an institution and how African Americans are discriminated against by the institutions. Moreover, he tries to show what effects these institutions have on the individual. Furthermore, with the concept of "self-love", Lamar offers an alternative approach to solve this problem.

In 2018 hip hop became the most popular music genre in the US and there is no denying the influence it has on today's popular culture. Hip hop has its origins in African American musical tradition and was used as protest music by young African Americans in the 1970s and 80s and can therefore be described as being part of African American culture. Even in other parts of popular culture we now see many African Americans having achieved worldwide fame. One could think that the US has overcome its historic legacy of slavery and racism. However, in stark contrast to that are the claims that African Americans today live in an era of mass incarceration and police brutality, claims that are backed up by statistics and movements like "Black Lives Matter". How can this predicament be explained that America, on the one hand, seems to have overcome racism, but on the other hand, African Americans are still being challenged by massive inequalities? Some people see an explanation to this predicament in the concept of institutional racism, a term that has its origins in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s.
The term is also a topic of Kendrick Lamar's third studio album "To Pimp A Butterfly", with one song even titled "Institutionalized", suggesting Lamar's awareness of this problem.

Kendrick Lamar currently belongs to one of the most successful and influential artists in hip hop. His music often tackles personal struggles or social issues, which are often intertwined. This is especially true for "To Pimp A Butterfly". An analysis of Kendrick Lamar's music and the message behind it could offer a different perspective and approach to the issue of institutional racism.