The Dust Has Settled - Thoughts on Don Imus
Don't think our silence on Don Imus and his infamous comments regarding the Rutgers University women's basketball team means we aren't concerned or haven't been talking and thinking about it. On the contrary, it's been the subject of much conversation around here. Along with many other, greater, pressing concerns about the issues that affect women of color. Because let's face it, Don Imus calling black women 'nappy-headed hoes' is among the least of our worries.
Now that the dust has settled a bit and various folks have run their mouths on various radio and television shows and blogs, I wanted to speak on this publicly to air my opinion. One thing that strikes me about the uproar following his comments is how surprised so many people seemed to be. Why is anyone surprised that this man, who has shown he is a racist by his past actions and comments, said such a thing? Some examples of his prejudice:
* Imus and his cohorts referred to African-American sports columnist Bill Rhoden as a "New York Times quota hire"[38].
* In 1993, Imus referred to PBS anchor Gwen Ifill as a "cleaning lady."[39][40][41]
* As reported by New York Times columnist Bob Herbert,[42] in the course of a 1998 interview with Mike Wallace on 60 Minutes, Imus admitted telling a producer off-camera that McGuirk was hired to perform "n****r jokes."
* Imus has also repeatedly referred to Arabs as "ragheads."[43]
More here
The man has shown himself to be, over and over again, a virulent racist, homophobe, and sexist pig. So why all the faux surprise? I think people were most surprised that others finally got riled up enough to say and do something about his continual and obnoxious rants against others.
What also jumped out at me is how racist whites tried to point the finger back at black people, as if we are actually responsible for what Don Imus said. What about rap music? I kept hearing over and over on the news, and Oprah even did 2 shows to address 'the rap music question'. There's no question in my mind, there's no contradiction or dilemma. On the contrary I am surprised that black folks speaking out even took this question seriously. Are you serious? First of all, while there are some black rappers who are virulently hateful, sexist, and abusive toward black women in their speech/songs, they by no means represent the majority of rap artists. Nor does rap represent the majority of music being written and produced by black people, in particular black Americans. Second of all, if some black men calling black women hoes is responsible for racist whites such as Don Imus feeling free to call us hoes, then by that logic black men should feel free to call white women whores/bitches/sluts as well. Because it is evident to me in this sexist culture that this is what white men think of their women...unless, of course, they are virginal or married.
Don't believe me? Spend just a half hour watching any sports show or faux sports show such as wrestling. Not only will the show be filled with white women scantily clad in outfits designed to be whorish and titillating, but the commercials will be filled with white women sexually objectified to sell everything from beer to shoe polish. There has been reality show after reality show filled with white female contestants intent on sexually objectifying and selling themselves, from The Bachelor to the Flavor of Love to the Pussycat Dolls Search for a New Doll (or whatever it's called). And I grew up in the 80s and remember the metal and rock music videos with white women portrayed as hoes, grinding all over the hood of somebody's car (Tawny Kitaen in a Whitesnake video, remember that?) So please, get the heck outta here blaming rap music for Don Imus' idiocy.
I'm glad he got fired. It was about time.
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Now that the dust has settled a bit and various folks have run their mouths on various radio and television shows and blogs, I wanted to speak on this publicly to air my opinion. One thing that strikes me about the uproar following his comments is how surprised so many people seemed to be. Why is anyone surprised that this man, who has shown he is a racist by his past actions and comments, said such a thing? Some examples of his prejudice:
* Imus and his cohorts referred to African-American sports columnist Bill Rhoden as a "New York Times quota hire"[38].
* In 1993, Imus referred to PBS anchor Gwen Ifill as a "cleaning lady."[39][40][41]
* As reported by New York Times columnist Bob Herbert,[42] in the course of a 1998 interview with Mike Wallace on 60 Minutes, Imus admitted telling a producer off-camera that McGuirk was hired to perform "n****r jokes."
* Imus has also repeatedly referred to Arabs as "ragheads."[43]
More here
The man has shown himself to be, over and over again, a virulent racist, homophobe, and sexist pig. So why all the faux surprise? I think people were most surprised that others finally got riled up enough to say and do something about his continual and obnoxious rants against others.
What also jumped out at me is how racist whites tried to point the finger back at black people, as if we are actually responsible for what Don Imus said. What about rap music? I kept hearing over and over on the news, and Oprah even did 2 shows to address 'the rap music question'. There's no question in my mind, there's no contradiction or dilemma. On the contrary I am surprised that black folks speaking out even took this question seriously. Are you serious? First of all, while there are some black rappers who are virulently hateful, sexist, and abusive toward black women in their speech/songs, they by no means represent the majority of rap artists. Nor does rap represent the majority of music being written and produced by black people, in particular black Americans. Second of all, if some black men calling black women hoes is responsible for racist whites such as Don Imus feeling free to call us hoes, then by that logic black men should feel free to call white women whores/bitches/sluts as well. Because it is evident to me in this sexist culture that this is what white men think of their women...unless, of course, they are virginal or married.
Don't believe me? Spend just a half hour watching any sports show or faux sports show such as wrestling. Not only will the show be filled with white women scantily clad in outfits designed to be whorish and titillating, but the commercials will be filled with white women sexually objectified to sell everything from beer to shoe polish. There has been reality show after reality show filled with white female contestants intent on sexually objectifying and selling themselves, from The Bachelor to the Flavor of Love to the Pussycat Dolls Search for a New Doll (or whatever it's called). And I grew up in the 80s and remember the metal and rock music videos with white women portrayed as hoes, grinding all over the hood of somebody's car (Tawny Kitaen in a Whitesnake video, remember that?) So please, get the heck outta here blaming rap music for Don Imus' idiocy.
I'm glad he got fired. It was about time.
Subscribe to Personal Growth for Black People by Email
posted by Trula at
9:19 AM
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