David Stevens

Department of Politics
dh_stevens@yahoo.com

David Stevens’ research examines the extent to which hip-hop organizations in South Africa have been successful in incorporating young people into democratic political life. Questions to be addressed include: How do organizations politicize their members? How do organizations publicly express their political views, if at all? Do young people, through their association with hip-hop organizations, develop a set of tools that will enhance their ability to succeed in the democratic political arena or are members pushed towards utilizing extra-democratic means for making their voices heard? Are members encouraged to express a diversity of opinions, or are they simply pushed along a single ideological line? Particular attention will be paid to the role that legitimacy plays in hip-hop organizations and their ability to recruit and politicize disadvantaged youth.