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America Needs to Listen and Learn
Imus's racist remarks about blacks create black on black criticism not dialog about race
JEROME ESPREE
Columnist
EspreeNet News Service
Syracuse NY(ENET News) By now, everyone has heard the racist comments about the Rutgers University women's basketball team by Don Imus, so I will not repeat his words in this article. We (Americans) have a way of desensitizing serious issues in this country by over using the offensive statements especially when it comes to Blacks, then making the claim that African Americans use the same words or terms.
What are the issues really?
He made a racist statement and lost his job, white Americans want the privilege to judge and tell Black's what is offensive, and keep the privilege of saying what they want. If you can say it, I can say it kind of privilege. Well like the words in a Prince song, "I'm here to tell you, there is something else", our view. Let's start with the fact that a 66 year old man wants to have a heart to heart with 17, 18, 19 and 20 year old girls. Race issues are not young adult issues, and we as a community should not put them in the middle, when they are the victims.
The youth are normally the victims of imposed impressions, attitudes, and environment, but we as a nation dismiss them when the don't prove our own personal point of view. This particular group of young women handle this situation in a manner that proves everyone's point. They said that they were hurt, offended and forgave, but seriously what did you expect. I am personally offended that everyone from Oprah Winfrey to man on the street felt the need to say they are proud of the way the team spoke and handled themselves. I think that's racist, did you not expect them to be articulate, thought provoking and sincere because they were Black or Black athletes.
It's true we as black people have cheered for the black contests on the Price Is Right and watched the Olympic gymnastic competition to see Dominique Dawes because we take pride in our people. But, we still shouldn't expect anything less than greatness 24/7. Now the reality is completely different because the images we see on a daily bases do not invoke pride so sometimes we take what we can get.
Everyday, the conversation has changed, from Racism, to objectifying women, to hip hop music and the use of the Nword. Now, this kind of deflection is classic. Do you remember hearing talk about the social security crisis, 911, Bin Laden, finding weapons of mass destruction, the war with Iraq, now the war in Iraq? It's classic.
Let's deal with the problem in this case. Political Strategist Donna Brazile was on a Sunday morning show trying to speak on why she felt the comments were racist and how it affected her. She was cut off by a white male panelist who said the team forgave him, as if she should move on to another issue. This was in the first ten minutes of an hour show. As the only Black person, at the table with four other people, she never got a chance to finish her statement and they never had a chance to hear from an adult peer who could have enlightened them on what was going on, because their privilege would not let them believe that they need to listen and learn.
It should be a given, that you can not slap someone and tell them it didn't hurt, just like you can not tell another group how they should feel, when you caused the pain. I have a lot of examples of how it works for other groups and not for Blacks but history tells us proof is only relevant went the accuser is willing to accept it.
In this country, blacks are collecting evidence hoping one day, everyone else can accept it.
Changing the conversation
When did this story turn into a question of who should represent black people? On a side note as a example of deflection, the majority wanted to choose who minorities follow and/or listen to. I want to make this very clear, for the record, it's not their call. If someone works in the area of civil rights, it's there job to speak out, even if you don't like them. Black people have listen to a lot of people over the last four hundred years that they have issues with, so chalk this up as a moment of African Americans freedom.
A reporter asked one of the Rutgers women about how the team felt about Reverend Sharpton and Reverend Jackson speaking on there behalf and she responded, I think that it (the racist comments) proves the point that he (Rev. Sharpton) has been making all of these years and I am happy that they are speaking up. Although the reporter tried to make it a black on black confrontation with these student athletes, it didn't work, but the mainstream media successfully turn it into an attack on hip hop.
I say and say it again, blacks are the largest minority in this country and in an attempt to devalue an entire race, whatever happens to them, somehow they brought it on themselves.
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