Posted by
Tzimisce on Wednesday, May 16, 2007 1:35:45 PM
Where are you Al Sharpton and Jesse Jackson? Last week the radio shock jocks Opie and Anthony along with their guest "Homeless Charlie" made light of the idea of raping Condoleezza Rice. You think that Jackson and Sharpton would be all over an incident about some white guys (what color is "Homeless Charlie"?) pondering the rape of a black woman. A woman that appears in her pictures to have nappy hair and treat her like a ho.
A little over a year ago Jesse Jackson wrote:
"The history of white men and black women – the special fantasies and realities of exploitation – goes back to the nation’s beginning and the arrival of slaves from Africa."
You'd think he'd step up to the plate now to defend Rice. And on the heels of Don Imus being fired, you'd think that Al Sharpton would be all over this. But no, there is a strange silence. Most surprising of all in this case though: you'd think that CBS radio would dump Opie and Anthony over the comments. True, the comments were made on XM and probably not stated over CBS' public airwaves, but you'd still think that in the quest for continued racial fairness CBS would punish the duo.
So what conclusion are we to draw here? Why is it okay for a couple of stupid white boys to joke about forcing themselves on a successful black woman?
We all know the answer: politics. Condoleezza Rice is a member of the Bush administration. Her connection to the administration for all intents and purposes makes her public enemy number one. So you can use all kinds of racial slurs and make all kinds of disgusting suggestions about her and get away with it. The only punishment XM gave Opie and Anthony was a 30 day suspension *with pay*. Wow, I call that a "vacation". And CBS won't do anything at all. Gotta love the selective anger. It's sad to think that some people are shielded as Sacred Cows simply due to politics.
And I know what you're thinking: Do I believe Opie and Anthony should be kicked off the air? Answer: No, of course not. I didn't think that Imus should have been kicked off the air either. Nor should have JV and Elvis. (Making fun of the way people pronounce things? Who hasn't done that? There are dialects from all over the United States. Who hasn't heard a comedian making fun of a red neck/northern easterner/Brooklyn or other accent?) Would I be offended if jokes about white people were made by radio shock jokes and other media types? They make jokes about white people all the time in various media outlets. Despite this, no one ever gets fired for racist jokes against the light skinned. So my opinion in that respect doesn't matter.
We need to make the rules consistant regardless of race, religion, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation or politics.