Rapper's Inaugural Invite a Shocker, Say Family Advocates
by Fred Jackson, Bill Fancher, and Jody Brown
January 6, 2005
(AgapePress) - Christians who helped re-elect George W. Bush are in for a major shock. WorldNetDaily reports that organizers of this month's inauguration festivities have invited one of the most vile rock starts in the country to entertain Republican young people.WorldNetDaily describes Kid Rock as "a popular vulgar rock-rapper whose lyrics wouldn't begin to pass muster with the Federal Communications Commission." But that is who Republican organizers have chosen to headline the entertainment at the inaugural youth concert, hosted by none other than the president's two daughters Jenna and Barbara.
For those who may not be familiar with Kid Rock, also known as Robert James Ritchie, he is a Detroit-based rapper who, among other things, has received a 1999 MTV video music award for being the "Sluttiest Male Celebrity," and shared the same stage as Janet Jackson at last year's controversial Super Bowl halftime show. His lyrics often focus on the recreational nature of sex and send a message of female sexual exploitation.
In addition, a search on Yahoo! indicates he performed in at least one pornographic video (released in 2000) along with well-known porn stars Tricia Deveraux, Ron Jeremy, and Teri Weigel. The video was produced by infamous porn video director John Stagliano, whose trail of porn videos slinks back to the early 1980s.
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Dr. Don Wildmon |
Reaction? You Bet...
The rapper's invitation has created a stir among many pro-family supporters of the president. Dr. Don Wildmon, founder and chairman of the American Family Association, says the White House has sent a shocking statement to millions of families who supported his re-election."Kid Rock is an inexcusable choice," Wildmon says in a press release. "His music lyrics serve to teach our young men to disrespect women in a most vile, self-serving manner. Obviously, someone on the Presidential Inauguration Committee has made an extremely poor judgment call."
Bob Knight of the Culture and Family Institute concurs. "I think the Republicans are so sensitive to the fact that the Democrats have a lot more Hollywood support, and support from MTV, that they'll take anything they can get," he says, "but taking Kid Rock is going a step too far. [He] advocates mindless sex, he uses the f-word -- he's anything but a representative of family values."
Bob Knight | |
Both Wildmon and Knight believe Kid Rock needs to be removed from the inaugural program as soon as possible. But can that happen? Knight thinks so."I think if they hear enough outrage from the people who elected President Bush, that this is a slap in the to their values, that they'll have to reconsider," Knight says. "He ought to be dis-invited."
WorldNetDaily quotes California pro-family leader Randy Thomasson who says if Kid Rock is allowed to perform at this inauguration event, it will send a clear message to pro-family Americans that the GOP has "taken them for a ride and ditched them in the gutter."
That is why Thomasson, executive director of Campaign for Children and Families, tells WND that the rapper's presence at a GOP event is "more than inconsistent" with the pro-family principles of the Republican Party. "It's a sham," he says. "This guy is one of the worst role models for youth imaginable."
