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How Could You, Bruh? T.I. Violated a Sacred Guy Code

When did misogyny become "barbershop talk?"

The barbershop is the mecca of the Black male experience.

It’s the only place where Black men can bond in solidarity, confess their most despicable deeds, and share their unfounded opinions on things that they’re probably not too knowledgeable on, yet throw caution to the wind because it’s a seemingly safe space.

The unique code has been ingrained in the DNA of Black men since the dark caesar light taper. All we ask is that what is talked about at the barbershop stays in the barbershop.

However this week, T.I. broke the code, blaming his ridiculous opinions on women being too emotional for the Oval Office on “barbershop talk,” indirectly suggesting that his sexist opinions on women are a shared experience among that Black male psyche.

Wrong.

While we commend him for owning his comments as both sexist and baseless as a son, husband, and father of young girls, we’re disappointed in his halfhearted attempted to point the finger at the most revered home for the Black male thought.

Sure, while in the barbershop, some men are uninhibited in their provocative conversations about women, politics, and sexuality, but that does not at all encapsulate the views of all Black men.

During true “barbershop” banter such comments would not at all have been taken for truth but rather challenged and debated, as the spectrum of Black male ideologies are vast and wide.

The same way there isn’t one answer for the greatest athlete of all time, whether or not OJ is innocent, and whether or not a man is allowed to leave his wife for one night with Serena Williams.

What is known, however, is that the barbershop is a nucleus for all forms of Black male expression. A place to get the latest news with a side of unfiltered opinion.

So while T.I. decided to voice his unpopular opinion on women’s rights, it is in no way a blanket sentiment felt by Black men alike. It isn’t just barbershop talk either, but more so a misogynistic idea that T.I. should have kept to himself.

He must cut his own hair, smh.

The opinions expressed here do not necessarily reflect those of BET Networks.

BET.com is your No. 1 source for Black celebrity news, photos, exclusive videos and all the latest in the world of hip hop and R&B music.

(Photo: Ilya S. Savenok/Getty Images)

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