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I hate being put in a position of speaking for my race because it just reinforces the false notion that races are homogenous. But as a Black man, let me make a few points:
1. Imus' comments revealed an underlying prejudice in his character which is not surprising to me or anyone else that has listened to his show. That is what he is paid to portray. He sells the voice of the angry white male just like Sharpton and Jackson sell the voice of the angry black male. The issue though is not that Imus has prejudices, but that he dared break the illusion and cross the line of deniability for his investors. Imus is probably no more prejudice against black people that I am prejudice against white people. I have no problem with white people on an individual basis but I have residual bad blood because of my upbringing and perceived slights against my people and my country and I would guess that Imus feels the same way about us.
2. Please Please Please, stop dusting off Jesse and Al every time there is a racial issue. They are self sustaining business and have very little credibility beyond a certain nostalgia for the leaders of the past that they represent the last crumbs of.
3. You cannot compare Snoop to Imus because when Snoop talks about a ho he talks about hos he knows personally. There are hos of all races and they exist in real life and should be discussed. Hos are dangerous people. But to call refer to a Black woman as nappy headed ho is a racial and sexual attack on an innocent woman based solely on her race and sex. I am outraged by the unprovoked attack on innocent Black women as much as if it were aimed at my wife, mother, sister, etc. But attacks on real hos I have distance from. Sure they may be mothers, wives, sisters too, but the hos we talk about in rap music are caricatures more often than not. These are real women. Still, a suspension, fine, apology, some form of restitution would have been sufficient for me. Firing Imus just sweeps the issue of race and meaning racial dialogue under the rug.
4. Affirmative Action is a racist and sexist policy but fully defensible at the time it was created. It needs to be revamped now into a more comprehensive socio-economic model that encompasses the needs of disadvantaged people from all walks of life.
Thank you all. Ive been needing to get that off my chest for a couple days now.
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I know Nietzsche doesnt rhyme with peachy, but you sound like a pretentious prick when you correct me.
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