ReportFromTheFront's Blog

            A while back, I decided to weigh in amidst the furor surrounding the on-air remark by Don Imus [The Mouth That Roared, 4/10/07] about the Rutgers’ Women’s basketball team wherein he referred to them as “nappy headed ho’s”.  The column was not aimed at Imus for putting his mouth in gear before engaging his brain so much as it was intended to take the Black community at large to task for the mock indignation and insincere self righteousness that oozed into and permeated every story, every interview and every news bite, relevant or not.

            My position about Mr. Imus and what he said is – as it was then – that statements like the one he made have no place in the public airwaves. My position about the so called ‘outrage’ expressed by Black America also remains unchanged. If African Americans want to change the way others refer to them, then they’re going to have to begin by changing the way that they refer to themselves; Cleaning up and cleaning out the language and imagery in rap and hi-hop music & videos and treating each other with respect, for example, won’t completely solve the problem, but it would sure be a great start.

            I raise the subject of Don Imus in response to the announcement by Citadel Broadcasting that “The Mouth That Roared” will return to the airwaves on December 3rd. Further details such as show times, markets, etc. were not available as of this writing, nor do we know any specifics about the shows’ format or content. We’re just gonna have to wait and see what the “I-Man” comes up with.

            The question on everyone’s mind, of course will be ‘Has Imus learned his lesson’? I’m sure he has. I’m fairly certain that Don Imus will have learned that times have changed, people have changed and that society itself has changed. Today, in the fledgling years of the 21st century, there are some things that you just can’t say on the radio anymore. Like it or not, the boundaries of public domain have changed as well, and if you want to be on the radio, you’ll have to change too.

            What I am wondering, however, is whether Black America has changed and if so, how? Imus’ change will be self evident by the transparency Citadel will most assuredly put in place and the daily content of his show. His humor will surely be self deprecating and he will – at least in the beginning – stay away from hot button issues, especially race. If the ‘suits’ at Citadel have any sense, they’ll also have a producer riding shotgun with a lightning quick finger on a delay switch…..just in case.

            But what about African America? In all fairness to Don Imus, any changes they have made should be equally apparent. But alas, as I look around, the state of Black America in this regard appears to me, at least, to be the same as it has always been. The lyrical content of rap and hip-hop offerings remains as objectionable now as always. Young black people – men in particular -  still openly and shamelessly refer to themselves and others using the dreaded ‘N’ word – a word so feared that almost no media outlet will sanction its use. Maybe, as I said last time, it’s just a Black thing and I just can’t understand.

            I suspect, somehow, that I understand all too well.

             So when Al Sharpton and his ilk rear back on their respective haunches, beat on their respective chests and rail into the wind, I will turn a deaf ear and a blind eye.