Some years after Cosby made his famous or infamous remarks at a Black organization's Washington D.C. function, right-wing racist pundits are still referring to it as the defining analysis of what is wrong with Black America.
I have no problem with most of what Cosby said, but I have a BIG problem with where and how he said it - giving the right-wing white racists more ammunition to attack us with (which they did right after the speech, and are still doing so). Blacks should never point to the ills of other Blacks without putting it in the context of the white supremacist system that brought our ancestors here in chains and has continued it's domination long after slavery has officially ended. Most Blacks have overcome and learned to survive in this system, but some have not yet done so. When there is any criticism to be levied, the victimizer should always be criticized at the same time the victim is criticized, to provide true context and balance.
I have no problem with most of what Cosby said, but I have a BIG problem with where and how he said it - giving the right-wing white racists more ammunition to attack us with (which they did right after the speech, and are still doing so). Blacks should never point to the ills of other Blacks without putting it in the context of the white supremacist system that brought our ancestors here in chains and has continued it's domination long after slavery has officially ended. Most Blacks have overcome and learned to survive in this system, but some have not yet done so. When there is any criticism to be levied, the victimizer should always be criticized at the same time the victim is criticized, to provide true context and balance.
I listened carefully again to the speech and there were many factual inaccuracies in it - like $500 sneakers (no such thing exists in the stores, even today) etc. It is these kind of exaggerations that have contributed to the caricature of Blacks as mindless creatures and thoughtless consumers.
Also, I objected to his elitist references to the 'lower classes' as if he was divinely appointed to be in the 'upper classes'. If so, why has he been sued for sexual harassment by a reported 13 different women, most of whom were reportedly white? (he is reported to have quietly settled all those lawsuits) What is 'upper-class' about his apparent whoring around on his wife?????? What about his 'other' daughter (Autumn Jackson) that suddenly appeared a few years ago, that he reportedly had to admit was his (conceived during an extra-marital affair) and was paying for her college education and had paid over $100,000 of hush-money to her mother over the years. At least the 'lower classes' have an excuse for their economic and social impairment - what is his excuse for his 'moral impairment'????
I say if you are going to bash other Blacks, especially in the white media, you better be squeaky clean - Cosby certainly isn't. And likewise, few of us will ever be able to throw the first stones as he unfortunately did. What he also did was to use those stones to verbally assault people who were already injured - and that's totally inexcusable.
This link sums up Cosby's image problem and his dubious right to criticize anybody.
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