Topeka ? The Legislature could make an unusual statement about popular culture this year and criticize gangsta rap for profanity-laced language and what critics consider messages that demean women and promote violence.

Rep. Peggy Mast, an Emporia Republican, plans to introduce a resolution condemning gangsta rap after legislators begin their annual session Monday. She’s doing so at the urging of Sonny Scroggins, a Topeka activist who has long liked rap – he names 50 Cent as a favorite – but is tired of the language rappers use.

While gangsta rap has been a target of criticism for years, a legislative resolution condemning it is unusual, according to the Recording Industry Association of America. In Kansas, resolutions typically are reserved for honoring people or notable achievements, expressing the Legislature’s position on federal issues or urging specific actions by an executive branch agency.

“It’s just that we can send a message that this is not something that Kansas approves of or welcomes,” Mast said during a recent interview.

Jonathan Lamy, a spokesman for the recording industry group, said it has heard of only one other legislative condemnation of gangsta rap, in Connecticut. One of that state’s U.S. senators, Joe Lieberman, has been an outspoken critic of some popular culture for years.

Also, last year, a congressional committee had a hearing in which gangsta rap was criticized.

Lamy noted that the industry began labeling music in 1985 so that parents and other consumers would know what contains explicit lyrics or content not suitable for children. The labeling program started in response to complaints about rock lyrics.

“The First Amendment tells lawmakers that they may lot limit speech merely because they find it objectionable,” Lamy said.