Say Uncle

The word bling is a recognized word in the dictionary thanks to Lil Wayne & Co.

Since the late 90s, the “bling-era” has increased the demand for celebrities and your neighborhood Cash Money Millionaires to shine in the latest jew-els.

With this increased demand and exposure, there have been a few eye-opening reports and history channel specials on the negative effects and atrocities of the diamond mining trade that recall the slavery system of the last century. North Miami-born, Los Angeles resident, Kareem Edouard, has put together one of the most far-reaching documentaries exploring the direct link between the diamonds, hip-hop culture, and society today in the 11-minute short titled Bling:Consequences and Repercussions originally released in 2005.

This is one documentary that your social studies teacher should be showing in class. Read up and press play.

For those that don’t know, what is a conflict diamond?

They are diamonds that originate from areas controlled by forces opposed to legitimate and internationally recognized governments and are used to fund military action in opposition to those governments.

Describe the process of the diamond trade today:

Today, DeBeers runs 60 to 70 percent of the world’s diamonds with contracts hidden beneath the monopoly that DeBeers has on the industry. Antwerp, Belgium is the central processing center for rough stones. When stones are found on a DeBeers mining center, they are sent to Antwerp to be processed and cut. New York is the largest processing center in North America, stones are brought there to be sold, making 47^th Street a wholesale center for diamonds.

What’s the situation like now for the average miner in Sierra Leone?

Sierra Leone is recovering from the devastation that conflict diamonds has caused in the 90’s. What has replaced the murders, rapes and displacement of the local area people is slavery. People there are paid 10 cents a day, given a 15 minute break for a cup of rice and water per 18 hour shift while mining diamonds for DeBeers. This is similar to the sharecropping days in the Deep South after slaves had no choice but to stay on the farms they were liberated from and work for low pay.

What devastation in the 90s are you referring to?

The war the rebels or RUF made on the corrupt government who started keeping profits of the diamond trade for themselves. In 1999 they assaulted the capital Freetown with “Operation Living Thing” killing 6,000 people in a few days. You have to understand that the RUF was not just 50 or so men; they were hundreds of poor, young men without jobs or a future. Also there was marshal law running throughout the country that made the conditions perfect to wipe out a large number of people.

Do you feel that Kanye West addressed this topic correctly with his “Diamonds from Sierra Leone” single?

Kanye initially did a great job bringing up the topic. After that point, the man has done absolutely nothing to further the cause. It’s amazing how you can shoot a million dollar video, take a stand on a topic and then continue with your own line of Diamond Jesus jewelry. Every time you see him on an awards show he is still wearing the latest “Bling.”

With artists like Paul Wall, Nelly and custom jewel merchants like Jacob the Jeweler becoming famous partially for their bling- will people become even less aware of their shines origins?

I don’t think people are less aware about their bling’s origin, more than they just don’t care. Take Oprah, she goes to Africa five-six times a year, she built a multi-million dollar school in South Africa, but everyday on her show you can see her wearing millions of dollars worth of diamonds.

In your opinion is it possible to improve the situation in Africa/throughout the world, and make the mining process safer and less corrupt?

Yes. There are plenty of organizations like global witness that look to push legislation to fight against conflict diamonds. Also the easiest way to address the issue is to simply ask questions. Ask your jeweler if he knows where he got those diamonds, ask for paper work for their origin.

Are other natural resources in the world for example oil and copper being plundered in the same way?

Yes, gold, platinum, sliver, Nikes, Adidas. You name it, a major company around the world is holding down some body for it!

How do you feel about the last statement from the young white kid at the end of the documentary- “most rappers should be supporting the Africans that are getting hurt, they should know better”?

Well what he said that I thought was very powerful was that “most rappers are BLACK and they should know better and help the Africans…” That to me was a very powerful statement and that’s why I used it to close the film. As African Americans who use hip hop as a voice to fight oppression, it’s kind of ironic that it is adding to the destruction of our brothers in Africa.

What were you looking to accomplish with putting out a documentary on this topic?

My main goal is to get the message out about conflict diamonds to the Hip-Hop generation. With all the hype associated with the “Bling Bling” lifestyle a lot of people are missing the negative impact it has here in the United States and in Africa. In African countries such as Sierra Leone, Liberia and the Democratic Republic of Congo, people were being amputated, raped, murdered and displaced for man’s lust for diamonds. Here in the US there is a cultural impact. As a black man it saddens me to see rappers dancing on TV with grills and diamond crosses, screaming Bling Bling at the tops of their lungs. I call the Bling lifestyle the “new age minstrel!”

If you could wear any type of jewelry what would it be?

None, I’m not a jewelry kind of guy. I let my blackberry to all the shinning for me, haha. Also I know people ask me this all the time, would I buy a diamond for my fiancé when it’s time to get married and I say only from a trusted dealer.

To view the documentary short Bling: Consequences and Repercussions and for more information please visit www.causalpictures.com