Don Imus says he's sorry. He also stated " I can't win with you people"!
The thirty year shock jock of the radio airwaves says he's embarrassed and couldn't possibly suffer anymore than the continuing outrage and backlash of criticism regarding his comments last week about the Rutgers women's basketball team. "Them some nappy headed hos", is the main remark that has everyone in an uproar. Civil rights leaders, Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton have called for his immediate termination. Thus far, he's only being suspended for two weeks by MSNBC and CBS; CBS has also vowed to monitor the show in the future. So, now that all that's out the way, it's really futile to endlessly blog about Don Imus and his idiot remarks. I have never listened to his show and could care less if he is fired. I wish he would be axed but come on--does anyone really expect action after decades of insensitive, abusive and racists banter between Imus and his army brigade of sexists bigots.
Yes, he apologized (even if it wasn't sincere) at least he did apologize. NEWSFLASH FOLKS...Has any rapper/hip hop artist ever apologized for referring to a black woman as a bitch or ho! If so please contact me. This dosen't excuse or offer any valid reason to use deragatory terms, which is what Imus keeps harping on.
Where do you think Don Imus received the unceremonious nod to degrade black women in free speech. It comes right from my own community. Listen, I love hip hop and some rap---but, the artists I listen to do not use an endless repetitive rant of utter disgust. Imus was right, he was trying to be "funny" because that's what the use of bitch, ho, nigger and pimp have become-a celebration of black culture not to be taken seriously. If you're called a pimp that's a good thing; a figurative medal for being some type of Casanova. The words bitch and ho have firmly been planted as the "insert derogatory term" here when the creative juices of an artist is challenged.
"In the culture at large, including popular culture, white women do not have the ongoing historical constructions of themselves as worthless, subhuman, promiscuous, predatory and hypersexual. This has been the burden of Black women since slavery, and hip-hop music participates in and is complicit with these stereotypical and damaging depictions of Black girls and women."
Educators Johnnetta Betsch Cole and Beverly Guy-Sheftall, from Gender Talk, The Struggle for Women's Equality in African American Communities. (p. 188)
Oh, I know what you're thinking but, Don Imus was wrong and he shouldn't have said it and blah blah blah! Of course he was wrong! Folks, let's be real about how society views black women; if mainstream America loves the sister then we all should love the sister (Oprah). If they hate the sister we all should hate the sister (Starr Jones). Personally, I like them both.
Who has allowed our image, our culture and our treasures to be emulated poorly, sold to corporate brass and helped further the degradation of black women? "Insert your own answer here". Exactly what and where is our black identity? When you find it let me know because right now I don't recognize it and we're allowing Madison Avenue to define it, bottle it and sell it.
