Film addresses the sexual politics of hip hop music

NEWBURGH — As part of a Social Justice Film Series, the YWCA Orange County and the Downing Film Center are hosting a screening of the film "Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes" at the Downing Film Center, located at 19 Front St., on the Newburgh waterfront.

This film will be the last of the series which will begin again in the fall of 2014

Filmmaker Byron Hurt, a life-long hip-hop fan, was watching rap music videos on BET when he realized that each video was nearly identical. Guys in fancy cars threw money at the camera while scantily clad women danced in the background.

As he discovered how stereotypical rap videos had become, Hurt, a former college quarterback turned activist, decided to make a film about the gender politics of hip-hop, the music and the culture he grew up with.

“The more I grew and the more I learned about sexism and violence and homophobia, the more those lyrics became unacceptable to me,” he says. “And I began to become more conflicted about the music that I loved.”

The result is "Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes," a documentary that tackles issues of masculinity, sexism, violence and homophobia in today’s hip-hop culture.

The special feature is being shown on Monday, June 2 at 7:30 p.m..

Admission is free – donations are welcomed. For those interested, a talk-back will follow the screening.

The Downing Film Center has limited seating — reservations are suggested.