"That's some nappy-headed ho’s there; I'm going to tell you that now."-Don Imus April 4, 2007 MSNBC “Imus in the Morning”
“White folks was in caves while we was building empires... We taught philosophy and astrology and mathematics before Socrates and them Greek homos ever got around to it.”
-Rev. Al Sharpton in a 1994 speech at Kean College, NJ.
Talk show host Don Imus has caused an uproar by using the above quote to describe the Rutgers Women’s B-Ball team. True enough, the uproar (if any at all) should be about what Imus said about the predominantly black basketball team, but it has become more than that. It is, at least in my eyes, also about hypocrisy, forgiveness, and mendacious outrage.
Imus has in the past made fun of many people. He has made fun of blacks and whites, Jews and Gentiles, men and women, Democrats and Republicans, and has himself been the brunt of much berating. I think this time the damage of the remark is because instead of insulting well-known national or international figures, he insulted a group of young women who gave everything they had to their school, their program, and left every ounce of pride and determination on the court. While sad and unfortunate, he has apologized publicly and has offered to apologize to the team face to face. With that being said, let my ranting begin.
Imus is on the hot seat for a comment (other than the reasons I mentioned above) that is tame compared to things he has said in the past. I am not saying it isn’t offensive, but why now are African-American and women’s organizations coming out of the wood work asking for his archaic, reptilian looking head? In my opinion it is because of a chance for folks to repair their irrelevance…namely folks like Al Sharpton, Jesse Jackson, and Kim Gandy the President of NOW.
Reluctantly, I threw Rev Al in the same group as the other two. I like(d) Sharpton because over the last couple of years it seemed as though he had matured. He had become quite funny and at the same time articulated quite a few good ideas for this country. He had moved past the days of helping to perpetuate the Tawana Brawley hoax that had ruined the lives of some falsely accused people. Of course his star may have peaked during the 2004 Presidential election. Is he now using this incident to gain some political clout within the Democratic Party prior to 2008? He wouldn't do this just for publicity would he?
Back in 1991, Rev. Sharpton, pleaded with the Judge to be lenient on the kid that stabbed him prior to a march. It made great publicity for Sharpton. He can beg for leniency for someone who tried to kill him but not for a stupid remark by Imus. I guess it is because this makes for great publicity as well, huh Al?
As far as Jesse Jackson who so infamously renamed New York City “Hymie Town”, gimme a break. This philandering “Man of God” has become more irrelevant than Max Headroom. He has become nothing more than a civil rights ambulance chaser, and Kim Gandy (who was quite clear about Andrea Yates being the victim when she drowned her 5 children) is fighting a declining membership in a feeble and diluted NOW.
Other former Imus guests are just “outraged” by his comments. Al Roker who has appeared on the Imus show to promote his books suddenly sees Imus as offensive. Even though Roker has said he has listened to Imus for many years, he is just now outraged!!? I hope your gastric bypass staples break Al. Oh how I love the hypocrisy. Thanks for WEIGHING in Roker.
The Rutgers team has agreed to meet privately with Mr. Imus and I am sure that Rev. Al or Jesse Jackson have their calls in to the university to volunteer to be a mediator of sorts. My advice to the ladies of the team (or anyone else who falls victim to an insult) is to either ignore it or just tell Imus when he comes by, to go f@#k himself. And just like you did through the tournament, leave everything you have on the floor, and walk away.
For some reason I think when this is all said and done Imus will be gone from MSNBC. There may even be some kind of lawsuit. I certainly hope not because I don’t think he deserves that. But then again, who am I to question Al Roker and our overly sensitive PC world?
Cheers…
26 comments:
If anyone cares to read it, One of our writers on Highbrid Nation actually worked wit Imus over the last few years at WFAN and had some really interesting things to say about the whole situation with Imus and he also has some inside info that the media hasn't mentioned about the whole story.
I read the link evorgleb. Yes it is just awful that Imus raises all of that money for Kids with Cancer and other diseases as well as raising money for his "crib" out west which has done so much good, not to mention offering a platform for Autism Speaks. And as far as Omar Miniya, he has been so offended by Imus that he appears on his show...Cheers!!
Very well said (and written, I might add -- particularly the line about Jackson being a "civil rights ambulance chaser," which was nothing short of brilliant). I often think things like this are much ado about nothing. Yes, the comment was inappropriate, but apologies have been made. It's time to move on, people. In case people have forgotten, the whole fucking world is turning to shit on the other side of the globe. The media's priorities are, per usual, misplaced.
It's funny (in the sad-funny context) how people will milk every potentially newsworthy issue for publicity.
What Allie said---my point about context has already been made
Nice to see what meat does for your mind sugar
Smooch
Thanks Allie. The issue for some like Rev. Sharpton is an issue about color...and the color is GREEN. Sad.
Lizza: Yes it is. And Sharpton, as well as others, are masters of it. Cheers!!
TB: I agree, red meat has firmed up my mushy mind.
Amen Brother! I like the bit about Roker just NOW being outraged. Now, saying that, I think what Imus said was garbage, but I don't think he should be fired...unless we remove every CD from the store shelves by Snoop and his friends.
Badway
Hey there Nick. Yeah good old Al "Can I GET Anymore Disingenuos" Roker. And yes it was garbage, but gimme a break...I don think it's termination worthy. Cheers you Madman!!
One of Roker's staples migrated south and lodged itself in his arse.. no wonder he's in such a foul mood.
Freedom of speech and the right to make a fool of one self.. it's a beautiful thing! W does it everyday...
That would be quite a pain in the ass Anndi. I guess we dont want people making fools of themselves in public. We need to keep fools in the attic with Crazy Uncle Joe who urinates on pictures of Lenin. What?
Aren't we glad the media has nothing else to cover (like our soldier dying in Iraq) than the latest celebrity broo-hhhha-ha
Hmmm, at least Rosie O'Donnell's not involved in this mess... yet.
Bwaaaaahhhhaaaahhhhaa.
Oh Mo, you know that she wont be able to leave this alone!!
archaic, reptilian looking head -- LOL!
I think it's time to move on, as well. I don't listen to the reptile guy, but do like the work he's done for Autism Awareness. I think if the Rutger's Women just took your advice and told him to go fuck himself everything would be dandy!
Ha...Well it does look like his head sheds at times. I think the ladies would feel better and Imus would appreciate that kind of talk if they indeed did that. Cheers!!
I have to agree with Mo. All this focus on celebrities and their insipid little problems... Wait.. is the reveal of Danielynn's paternity in jeopardy of being upstaged?
Oh NO!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Imus fathered Anna Nicole's baby when she was a student at Rutgers!? It's all mixing together. I cant keep up!!
...come to think of it, Imus DOES look like one of those reptile-people from V.
If you see him swallow a guinea pig whole -- run!!!
*snickers* can't keep up?
Great post! I wrote about the very same thing this morning (and used the exact same pic of Imus, creepy)
I have to say, you said it much better though. So, I put a link to this article at the end of mine!
Cheers
The moment we start deciding what is ok to say or not to say, it becomes a dangerous situation. It's funny cause it's ok for black comedians to make fun of white people. I am not saying what he said was not offensive. But so is half the stuff that is said on TV or radio. Just this morning someone was making fun of fat women. They were really mean. I should go protest.
Whatever happened to that Amendment thing we used to like so much?
-N
I'll take that under advisement Mo.
Anndi, it is merely my MIND that cant keep up...no, really.
Thanks Worm. I got your e-mail and will link you this morning.
Nat, you are correct, and by the way I am having problems pulling up your site for some reason dammit.
I am an African American male who, before this morning, was an ardent fan of the “Imus in the Morning” television program on MSNBC. Funny enough in fact, my usual routine was to flip back and forth between Imus and “The Today Show” while readying myself for work. I have just a few points to offer about the brewing controversy over Don Imus’ use of the phrase “nappy-headed hos” to describe the Rutgers women’s basketball team, and some of the comments I have read here in response to Mr. Roker’s courageous stance.
First, I am put off by the media instinctively going to Reverend Jackson and Reverend Sharpton for the pulse of black America. While I respect much of what both have done over the years to turn the spotlight on issues of race and civil rights issues in general, the Black community is not a monolith. These men don’t speak for all of “us.” No one does. It is absurd (and offensive) that whenever someone utters a racially insensitive statement about black people, the knee jerk reaction of TV program directors and producers alike is to immediately cut to Jackson or Sharpton for comment. (Why? Did I miss a meeting or something?) Were, say, offensive comments about Asian people or Jewish people (recall the Mel Gibson comment) to get similar mainstream traction to the Imus comment, imagine how silly it would be for the mass media to keep cutting to shots of the SAME TWO Asian or Jewish guys to “speak” for their respective races/groups. And beyond absurdity, there is the “kill the messenger” syndrome that naturally follows when we leave it up to Jackson and Sharpton to speak for black America. We must never make the messenger larger than the message. It obscures the real issue by leaving open Reverend Jackson and Reverend Sharpton to ridicule and criticism for their own past statements and actions. (With Jackson, people talk about his 1984 reference to Jews as “Hymies” and to New York City as “Hymietown”; with Sharpton, people talk about the racially charged incident in 1987 where he defended Tawana Brawley, a 15 year old black teenage girl who accused a number of white police officers of raping her. That incident was later revealed to have probably been a hoax.) Here’s a thought. Why not talk to more black people to get varying perspectives? (Al Roker, for one, has shown himself willing and capable of expressing a point of view. And he’s as American as apple pie!)
Second, as a number of posters have stated, there certainly is freedom of speech/expression in America. Don Imus is free to speak his mind, just as the market place is free to express itself. If he survives this, because of the core demographic makeup of the “Imus in the Morning” television program, I am assuming (and I could be wrong) that his audience will largely stick by him – resoundingly “speaking” or “expressing” their support for Imus and his message through sustained ratings. But this is not an issue of freedom of speech. Having a nationally syndicated television and radio program, broadcast over federally funded airwaves, is not a constitutional right. It is a privilege. And it is for this very reason that the snide comments directing Mr. Roker to simply “turn the channel” or “not listen” to Imus instead of calling for him to step aside are misplaced. (I note that when Howard Stern was finally fed up with the FCC censoring what he could broadcast over public airwaves, he went to satellite radio; were Imus to have done the same and made this comment, I’d condemn his statement BUT defend his right to remain on the air.)
Third, regarding the comment made by Don Imus himself this morning (and others in response to Mr. Roker) to the effect that African American popular culture tacitly condones racist images and terms in rap music et al., the comment doesn’t appear to be motivated to change the negative aspects of African American popular culture. Instead, it seems designed to provide cover for bigotry in mainstream media. Sure, blacks are as guilty or more guilty than others in creating, propagating and consuming wholesale racism aimed at blacks. But that is not an excuse under which Imus or anyone else can hide. Lets be crystal clear on this point. Wrong is wrong. It is as wrong if an African American media personality refers to a black woman as a “nappy-headed ho” as it is for Imus to have used this term to describe the Rutgers women. Similarly, other racist images and terms should be railed against and purged from the public airwaves. But I offer an analogy that I think will make my point here: pointing out racist images and terms in African American popular culture as a cover for Imus’ offense is no different than pointing to everyone else who is whizzing by and defying the speed limit when a cop pulls you over for speeding. It doesn’t undercut the substantive point, which is that YOU committed an offense for which YOU should be punished.
This brings me to my fourth and final point, which explains why I think that the I-man should either voluntarily leave his post, or be forcibly removed. I started watching the “Imus in the Morning” program regularly last year, mostly for the political personalities that go on daily to sell books. From my admittedly limited perspective, it has been a mixed bag on issues of race. For example, while Don Imus (and Chris Matthews, also of MSNBC) was one of the few mainstream faces to attribute a racial component to the Hurricane Katrina fiasco, Imus and his crew think nothing of routinely referring to, say, black athletes as animals. While Imus campaigned for Harold Ford to be the first black Senator from the south since reconstruction, I flinch every time he has one of his regular “comics” parody Attorney General Alberto Gonzales, who is Harvard educated and speaks the “Kings’ English” without a hint of an accent, as a heavily-accented buffoon. However, one incident in particular happened a while back which really turned me off to the Imus show (although I’m ashamed to say that I didn’t turn him off completely until this recent incident). During this particular sketch, Imus had his producer, Bernie Kerik, go to Harlem, New York to get a “Man on the Street” perspective on the war in Iraq. Bernie approached an African American man, late twenties, who had just gotten off of the subway and asked him what his take was on the war and the impending Iraqi elections. The man responded with insight and eloquence, even when pressed with follow-up questions from Bernie. From the studio, Imus let Bernie know that he was not pleased and that this was not the point of the sketch, to which Bernie then approached a tragically intoxicated black man who looked to be homeless and in his late sixties, and asked him the same questions. When the man gave his answers – the ones which were coherent, Imus and his cohorts erupted in laughter and applause. They had succeeded in making a black man in Harlem appear foolish.
I suppose that my detractors will say that “Imus in the Morning” is a comedy program and that it is intended to make everyone look like fools, including Don Imus. And I guess that’s true to a certain extent. But here’s my beef with Imus and race. Whenever he makes a joke at the expense of a person of color, it always has to deal with the target’s race – like saying that Serena Williams should pose for National Geographic Magazine and calling both Williams sisters “apes”; like constantly referring to Arabs as “rag heads”; like referring to Senator Barack Obama as “that colored fellow”; like calling PBS journalist Gwen Ifill, who famously moderated a vice presidential debate in 2004, a “cleaning lady.” And because it deals with the target’s race, and race is shared by millions of innocent bystanders, by extension these comments are almost universally hurtful. In other words, calling a black athlete an animal because he or she is black is tantamount to calling ALL black athletes animals; calling the Attorney General a gardener because he is Hispanic is tantamount to calling ALL Hispanics gardeners or other sorts of menial workers. It reeks of racial superiority and it has no place on the public airwaves.
I’ll end with this. In 2000, on the air, Don Imus promised Clearance Page, a black journalist who works at the Chicago Tribune and often serves as a media pundit, that he would stop with the racially offensive statements. (Ironically, that was the last time that Imus had Mr. Page on his show!) Imus clearly broke his promise time and time again. For the foregoing reasons, I think its obvious that a two week paid “suspension”, to be served after he has finished fund-raising for his ranch and promoting his wife’s new book, is less than insufficient. It is insulting.
Thank you, Mr. Roker, for having the courage to stand up against this garbage. Now, in the mornings, I’ll be exclusively watching you and the gang over at “The Today Show.”
Problems pulling up my site? That's not kosher.
-N
All of your points are well taken, and I also see that Mr.Roker is at least more courageous than you since you choose to remain anoymous, but that's certainly your right. Cheers...
Nat: Yes I have been havin gtrouble loading your site and a couple of others. I dont know what it is.
wow. matt...well said...I'm copying this and using it for fodder for the "office discussion" that I'm sure will occur over this....thanks!
Peace
Why thanks odat copy away my friend!!
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