Some would say there is a wave of consciousness occurring in the world, because some spiritualists would concede we are entering the fifth dimension. A growing number of educators, writers, conspiracy theorists, and information junkies have been sending messages to the world through every means of communication, especially film.
Author, scholar, filmmaker, and Los Angeles native, E. Raymond Brown, recently added his contribution to the ascension of the mind with his provocative film “Ghetto Physics: Will the Real Pimps and Ho’s Please Stand Up?”
Although the title is quite alarming at first, Brown is convinced you have not begun to understand the complexity of the archetypical juxtaposition. Through his film, he explores and breaks down the pimp/hoe complex, using street language to describe a seemingly complicated concept, and helps people from all walks of life understand the matrix of which we are all a part.
He wrote a book with the same title years prior to the release of the film. His inspiration came from the happenings in the world during George W. Bush administration, when there was talk of an Iraq war.
“It seems to me that you had conservative moments in government, surging forward and very overtly stating that no matter what the people said, in terms of the plan of the United Nations, in terms of people in the United States, we weren’t even we are going to do what we want,” Brown explained. “At that point, we (the general populace) were being mistreated and manipulated so thoroughly, and I felt these people’s (Bush, government, corporations, etc.) dynamics were right in front of me, and it was overtly showing up in the world in global power dynamics.”
He says the reason he chose the pimp/hoe archetypes has everything to do with the way American culture functions. In the eyes of the artist, the way our society operates from the government down to the independent business owner–falls into the pimp/hoe realm.
But he emphasizes the importance of replacing what most understand the pimp and the hoe’s purpose in the sex trade game with the analogy of being in the game of life, power, and capitalism.
“You have the corporate scene: (Executives) going to walk with 5,000 times more salary than you have the worker, and they are probably going to ship the whole job sector overseas, where they can get people to work for $6 a day rather than $600 a week or something like that. So that’s where you see the pimp and hoe dynamic show up,” Brown explained.
In the film, he says at the beginning, that everyone is a pimp or a hoe. Corporations who usually fall into the pimp archetype use consumers and celebrity endorsements, hos, to bring in money to make their pockets fat. All the while, the consumer is not necessarily benefiting from the relationship. Instead many are going broke trying to keep up with the Jones’.
While some may be offended at first by being called a hoe, Brown said pimping and hoing are not necessarily bad. At some point, everyone is exploiting or being exploited. It is just a matter of how to play the “game” and turning on the right switch at the right time.
Take Brown for example. In the interview, he disclosed that he did not have enough money to produce and distribute the film as he envisioned. So he promoted his film among the African American community, which readily supported his efforts and message.
But it wasn’t enough. William Arntz of “What the Bleep Do We Know?” and eventually Samuel Goldwyn came along and invested in his vision.
“You can say E. Raymond said, in order to get this project going, he had to do a lot of pimping and hoing,” Brown laughed, explaining that to get his film off the ground and into theaters, he “had to do some dancing.”
However, the end product is something that he is satisfied with, and his message was not compromised.
“His (Arntz) intentions are to impact the consciousness of the planet and awaken people. Now he still brings the same dynamic you are talking about, because he’s coming with his experience, his lens, and his filter, and I had to do some dancing. He brought in John Perkins of the World Bank.
It was like pulling the lid off the whole world banking game … that’s more stuff he brought to the film,” Brown elaborated. “But it’s still about working together; there’s a lot of pimp/hoe dynamics in Hollywood, in film period. It comes down to the pimp/hoe dynamic on so many subtle levels.
But at the same time … those dynamics you are still going to have to deal with. In dealing with a White source of capital, I had to dance with it. But I felt good about the final product. Did I prostitute away the essential message of the movie? Hell no.”
Brown would like the conversation about what’s really going on in the world to be sparked among the masses, awakening the consciousness of people. He hopes people become liberated by his message and find the solution for themselves, because there is no right or wrong answer. It is the path individuals will choose for themselves, as they discover the truth around them, he explains.
For more information about the book, film, and E. Ray, visit www.eraymondbrown.com or www.ghettophysics.com.
