MINORITY REPORT Bill Cosby: Blacks can't speak English NAACP leaders stunned by remarks of prominent comedian
In the presence of NAACP President Kweisi Mfume and other African-American leaders, comedian Bill Cosby took aim at blacks who don't take responsibility for their economic status, blame police for incarcerations and teach their kids poor speaking habits.
Bill Cosby
Cosby made his remarks at a Constitution Hall event in Washington Monday night commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Brown vs. Board of Education decision that paved the way for integrated schools, reported Richard Leiby in his Reliable Source column for the Washington Post.
Leiby said Cosby's remarks were met with "astonishment, laughter and applause."
When Cosby finally concluded, Leiby said, Mfume, Howard University President H. Patrick Swygert and NAACP legal defense fund head Theodore Shaw came to the podium looking "stone-faced."
Shaw told the crowd most people on welfare are not African American. He insisted many of the problems his organization addresses among blacks are not self-inflicted.
Cosby said, according to Leiby: "Ladies and gentlemen, the lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal. These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids – $500 sneakers for what? And won't spend $200 for 'Hooked on Phonics.'
He added: "They're standing on the corner and they can't speak English. I can't even talk the way these people talk: 'Why you ain't,' 'Where you is' ... And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk. ... Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. ... You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!"
The Post said Cosby also targeted imprisoned blacks.
"These are not political criminals," he said. "These are people going around stealing Coca-Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake and then we run out and we are outraged, [saying] 'The cops shouldn't have shot him.' What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand?"
Stagger, or anyone else for that matter: do you know of a site that has a full transcript of Cosby's remarks that can be reviewed? From that article, I hear Cosby slamming negligent parents among "lower economic" people and imprisoned (not all) blacks claiming wrongful incarceration. I don't see anywhere in that story where Cosby said "blacks can't raise kids", "blacks can't speak English", or "blacks belong in jail".
Let's focus on what was actually said, not what slant can be used to generate a bigger story. There is enough racism in this world as it is that no one benefits when we have to go looking for and making up more. I'd like to see some specifically racist statements before slapping Bill Cosby with such a negative label.
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Actually, Cosby didn't mention African Americans by name. As far as I can tell, he was striking out against the hip hop culture in general, which includes people of all races.
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Cosby has said things like this plenty of times. The most recent (and popular) was his exchange with Wanda Sykes during the Emmy (?) awards. He said something to the effect of when he was on the Cosby show, "we spoke English".
I believe his goal with "The Cosby Show" was not only to entertain. He wanted a positive portrayal of an African-American family, and, clearly, he succeeded. Of course, the show was somewhat criticized for being a "safe" portrayal that was comfortable to whites, but his success cannot be denied. But "The Cosby Show" was the exception, rather than the rule, and since the show has gone off of the air, there have been more embarassing shows than uplifting ones.
Plus, I just think he's a bitter old man. I've heard that he's a total asshole to just about everybody he meets, especially limo drivers, waiters, hotel workers, etc...
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Originally posted by StaggerLeeSorry, I thought the sarcasm in the title would be obvious.
He made some good points, but if I were a celebrity and said the same thing out loud in a speech, I would be labeled a racist.
Of course you would be labeled. It would seem so if your not a part of that race. If I was a celebrity and I said we need to have a higher standard on the driving license exams when it comes to Asians because the Asians I see driving are terrible. That would be looked at as a racist statement even if you thought it was true. I don't know why people always say, "if I said that I would be called racist." How else would people take it? Not every is as insensitve as others.
Originally posted by SeVen ™I don't know why people always say, "if I said that I would be called racist." How else would people take it?
Gee, I don't know ...comedy? People think Dave Chappelle calling white people "cracker" or "honkey" is hilarious (myself included and I'm white). Neither of those words have the stigma attached to them that the N-word has. Comedians have done entire routines mocking how white people dance, talk, etc. Racism is racism, no matter what color or creed the offending person is.
The funny thing is ...I bet a white person who made remarks like Cosby in the same setting would get lynched, even though it appears as though Cosby made no specific reference to African-Americans in his quoted speech.
Originally posted by Reverend J ShaftThe funny thing is ...I bet a white person who made remarks like Cosby in the same setting would get lynched, even though it appears as though Cosby made no specific reference to African-Americans in his quoted speech.
That's because the white man is evil.
Actually, a white man could've said things a lot less inflammatory that Cosby said and the PC-Police would be loaded for bear.
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Originally posted by JayJayDeanThough I'm sure it's more "coincidence" than "obsession". Now let me show you my personalized "GRIMIS" Ravens jersey.)
Guess this would be a bad time to bring up that game the Seahawks choked, wouldn't it? :)
Farley and Belushi are taken away in their prime yet Moore's heart continues to pump bacon grease in and out. God has a brutal sense of humor sometimes.- Barbwire Mike
Originally posted by Reverend J ShaftThe funny thing is ...I bet a white person who made remarks like Cosby in the same setting would get lynched, even though it appears as though Cosby made no specific reference to African-Americans in his quoted speech.
That's because the white man is evil.
Actually, a white man could've said things a lot less inflammatory that Cosby said and the PC-Police would be loaded for bear.
Eh, it's more like the "I can make fun of my family, but you can't," rule
For instance, I can refer to my sister or my mom in a negative context, if I'm pissed off at them. But if you call my sister or my mom a bitch, then it's fighting time.
Same thing, here. I can talk about dumb crackers from Texas, because I am one. But if you say it, it's not as cool. It's not fair, but it's the way it is.
And for what it's worth, I interviewed Cosby last year and I found him to be thoughtful, funny and polite. Not assholish in the least.
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Chris Rock's most famous routine covers a lot of the same issues that Cosby has addressed here. You know the one. It's the routine where Chris Rock says, "On one side, there's black people. On the other, you've got niggers."
Since Rock first performed this routine, other comics have constantly referred to it as a great sigh of relief for the black community. Finally, someone had given them a reason to stop the self-criticism for things other people were doing.
Is Chris Rock a racist? Hell no. Does he push the envelope? Hell yes. I think he's expressing a lot of the same exasperation that Cosby expressed, only Rock uses more cutting edge humour.
Here's the thing that bothers me about prejudice surrounding black Americans, and to some extent, black Canadians (or anyone, really), as well: when some people see a poor, ignorant white person with little edjucation and poor speech habits, he is called, albeit perjoritively, "white trash", and that person is not considered the norm. However, far too often, when someone sees a black person who is also poor, ignorant, with little edjucation and poor speech habits, it is assumed that that is just what black people are like. I think what Chris Rock's routine does is make the same distinction we have for everyone else.
Being poor, ignorant, under-edjucated, and having poor speech habits are not race issues. They only become race issues when they become, unfortunately, an ugly stereotype that actual racists use to justify their racism.
(edited by Stilton on 21.5.04 2341) "Have you seen my baseball?"
Stilton: I think the difference here is that this sort of thing is expected from Chris Rock, but not from Bill Cosby, and especially not in that setting.
(Not Bob Kohm)
In the context of baseball, the use of drugs hurts only the player. In the context of baseball, the use of alcohol hurts only the player. In the context of baseball, womanizing hurts whom? Maybe the wife of the player? In the context of baseball, felonies are crimes against society, not against baseball. In the context of baseball, gambling is the only crime against baseball.
Gambling, in the context of baseball, is a capital offense and Rose has richly earned-- hell, he agreed to-- his death sentence. Let him hang.
Bob Kohm, co-owner of Rotojunkies.com (rotojunkies.com) , and a large market kind of guy.
Bill Cosby contacted a Milwaukee Journal-Sentinel columnist who wrote some unkind (and ultimately incorrect) things about Cosby in light of this article. The clarification of what was said and meant can be found here (with a link to the original article at the bottom of this one): http://www.jsonline.com/ news/metro/may04/231392.asp
He was on the Tavis Smiley show tonight and explained how all the things he said were not printed, and that when taken into context, yes, he was slamming parents for thier childrens lack of success, but maintained that he is only saying it because its sad to see so many youths of color getting left out of life because of bad parenting.
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