Essence Carson is the captain of the Rugers Women’s Basketball Team. I just watched the bulk of the news conference with the team’s coach and the entire team fielding questions from the press about Don Imus’s latest efforts to prove that he is an unredeemable racist sexist shit. Carson took on most of the questions for the team, and demonstrated intelligence, sensitivity, humor, creativity and thoughtfulness that you will probably find in the top 1% of Rutgers University as a whole. (I’m including faculty here, by the way.)
I don’t know what her major is, but I think she should get the job of running CBS and/or MSNBC after she graduates. Or even before. I wonder if she can start tomorrow.
But what do do about Imus? The team will be meeting with him soon, and they’ll talk. At the moment, the team is playing its cards close, trying not to sensationalize the issue, and taking it all in. But this does not mean that the rest of us can’t beat up on Don. He does, after all, deserve it.
Imus is a shock jock. As a shock jock, he takes chances. When you take chances, sometimes you’ve got to pay the piper. Does this mean he should be fired for making the remarks in the following transcript?
IMUS: So, I watched the basketball game last night between — a little bit of Rutgers and Tennessee, the women’s final.
ROSENBERG: Yeah, Tennessee won last night — seventh championship for [Tennessee coach] Pat Summitt, I-Man. They beat Rutgers by 13 points.
IMUS: That’s some rough girls from Rutgers. Man, they got tattoos and –
McGUIRK: Some hard-core hos.
IMUS: That’s some nappy-headed hos there. I’m gonna tell you that now, man, that’s some — woo. And the girls from Tennessee, they all look cute, you know, so, like — kinda like — I don’t know.
McGUIRK: A Spike Lee thing.
IMUS: Yeah.
McGUIRK: The Jigaboos vs. the Wannabes — that movie that he had.
IMUS: Yeah, it was a tough –
McCORD: Do The Right Thing.
McGUIRK: Yeah, yeah, yeah.
IMUS: I don’t know if I’d have wanted to beat Rutgers or not, but they did, right?
ROSENBERG: It was a tough watch. The more I look at Rutgers, they look exactly like the Toronto Raptors.
IMUS: Well, I guess, yeah.
RUFFINO: Only tougher.
McGUIRK: The [Memphis] Grizzlies would be more appropriate.
Well, obviously, yes, he should be summarily fired for this. But CBS/MSNBC have chosen to give him a two week suspension (vacation) instead. This strategy is obviously based on the plan to make more money no matter what it takes. I’m thinking it may backfire.
But let’s look at the option of merely giving him a vacation instead of firing him for calling these young women “nappy-headed hos.” Let’s give that idea a chance and see if there is anything to it. I’ve watched a number of reports, talking heads, etc. covering this and it is clear that some (I think a minority) would prefer the hand slap over doing the right thing. (Am I showing a bias here? No. I’m right and they are wrong. I’m giving them more of a chance then they deserve. What a nice guy I am.)
The main reason given for not simply firing Imus the Yahoo is that he will continue on his radio show and fix everything: Racism, sexism, all of it. Why? How? Well, it is said that “Imus’s heart is big, but so is his mouth…” This is the excuse for his inexcusable behavior. This means that he really is a nice guy and this was just a goof, and he’s got a large audience and now he will reform and change the world in a positive way. In ten years from now we’ll look back at this and say “Whew, that racism thing, that sexism thing, these things are in the past because of the great work Don Imus did after that flap over the nappy-headed hos.”
OK, maybe that would be a good idea. But there are three serious flaws in this argument. The first and most obvious is that there has to be line, and calling these young women nappy-headed hos crosses that line, and he should be fired. It does not matter what else he may or may not do. There are other jocks, even other shock jocks. Just get rid of him.
The second flaw is that this has happened before, several times. And Imus has apologized and promised not to ever do this again. Yet he has. So hopes that Imus will suddenly be the New White Martin Luther King Jr. are false hopes. So just fire him.
On top of this, we can look back at these “promises” to do better and find, among them, the following transcript:
This is a conversation between him and his producer in August, 2001:
“PAGE: Are you raising your hand?
“IMUS: I have it up.
“PAGE: OK. Number one. I, Don Imus…
“IMUS: I, Don Imus…
“PAGE: . . . do solemnly swear . . .
“IMUS: . . . do solemnly swear . . .
“PAGE: . . . that I will promise to cease all simian references to black athletes. . .
“IMUS: . . . that I will promise to cease all simian references to black athletes. . .
“PAGE: . . . abandon all references to non-criminal blacks as thugs, pimps, muggers and Colt 45 drinkers.
“IMUS: I promise to do that.
“PAGE: Very good. How about an end to Amos and Andy cuts, comparison of New York City to Mogadishu and all parodies of black voices unless they are done by a black person, ’cause you’re really not very good at it.
“IMUS: I think Bernard should be doing this. He should have his hand up.
[end of transcript]
Imus is obviously an unredeemable racist sexist asshole. So that was flaw two: If you can’t fix it, don’t try. This cannot be fixed. So just fire him.
Flaw number three is that there is a false dichotomy going around here. The choices seem to be: 1) Fire Don Imus and end his career; vs. 2) Keep him on the air with the hope/assumption that he will reform and undo all of the damage he has done. By keeping that dichotomy alive, it is harder to fire the poor guy. It would end his career. Boo f*k’n hoo. We would not want that to happen. Oh dear. What would he do. He would starve to death or die of boredom. Maybe instead of firing him for his inexcusable behavior we should just, well, maybe give him a couple of weeks off or something.
This is a false dichotomy because firing him does not necessarily end his career. What happens next … what he does after he is fired … is a matter of choice and chance, and it will not necessarily be good for his career, but from the moment that he called these women “nappy-headed hos” he brought onto himself the distinct possibility of getting reamed. He is a shock jock. Shock jocks take chances. Imus took a chance. Why should the pride and dignity of all women and all African Americans be set aside to save his sorry ass from his own stupidity, racism, and sexism?
If he is fired, he may go off and become the New White Martin Luther King Jr. Or he may get a new show somewhere, maybe on one of those right wing short wave radio stations, and become the icon of the White Supremacists … maybe he would be more comfortable there. Who knows? Maybe he would go off for two years and do great things and truly prove himself as reformed, and then all the different radio and TV networks would be scrambling to sign him on.
They don’t have to say “Imus, we fire you forever! Get outta here!” … they could just say “Imus, we fire you until you are no longer the world’s biggest A-hole! Good luck with that!”
The point is, it would be up to him to prove himself one way or another. The pride and dignity of all women and all African Americans, the integrity of our very society would not be jeopardized just because they don’t want to be bad do Don. Because he has a big heart, a heart that is only slightly smaller than his mouth, or whatever other post hoc exculpatory bullshit you want to believe about this yahoo.
So the flaw in the argument here, flaw number 3, is that there are not merely two choices: End his career or support his career. He can be fired, which is the right thing to do, and then we can wait and see which version of Imus materializes over the coming months or years. It is not as though he does not have a retirement plan.
My hope, honestly? What I really want to see happen? I want Imus off the air and I want an appropriate replacement for him.
I’m thinking it should be Essence Carson.
The Essence Carson show. It has a ring to it.
16 Responses to “Essence Carson is my hero”
- 1 Pingback on Apr 10th, 2007 at 6:50 pm
- 2 Pingback on Apr 12th, 2007 at 3:50 pm
The weird thing about all this is that no one is really talking about it at Rutgers. While news vans have been around campus since the day before the big game and the reaction of Imus’ idiotic comments have made the front page of the Daily Targum, I have to admit that the who controversy isn’t really big news around here. In fact, if I didn’t see all the news reports, I wouldn’t have known about any of this at all.
Overall I find this quite strange; our seemingly cursed football team takes an easy schedule that doesn’t really get them anywhere despite a good season, and people plan on taking several days off from class to go stand in line to get into a game that ended up not meaning much anyway. We did win and there was practically a riot as a result, but the women’s basketball team makes it as far as they did and no one seemed to care very much about it. Hell, it was news to me when I found out the women’s basketball team made it as far as they did, but then again I’m not really active or invested in the Rutgers community (give me my degree so I can get out!).
Anyway, the overall reaction to Imus’ comments seems to be par for the course as far as Rutgers goes: “Oh really? If had anything to do with football I might consider caring.”
I suppose this means that Imus will have to move over to Fox with all of the other racist and sexist jerks, right?
Don: Yes, that is what I was assuming!
Well, considering that Al Sharpton has made a career as a pundit, presidential candidate, etc. from one completely false scandal called the “Tawana Brawley” affair where “Under the wing of [Al]Sharpton, Maddox, and Mason, a full-fledged media sensation was born.”
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tawana_Brawley
http://www.lewrockwell.com/and.....on134.html
Al Sharpton, who is making quite a stir here, made his career off of a series of baseless rape accusations, and an indictment of white society at large, and no one called him fully out, nor did he fess up to creating the scandal.
It was a concocted series of false accusations against men, whites, society at large, etc. So” When you take chances, sometimes you’ve got to pay the piper. Does this mean he should be fired for making the remarks?”
No.
This type of media, and the pundits that fill its program slots are sensationalist, scandal fed concoctions in their own right, and pundits are scandal mongers, and scandal makers. Sure, race is definitely one of the cards that gets played in competing media outlets, and also cometing social philosophies, but it is a two way street.
If Don Imus has done any one thing wrong here, it is most likely that his circle of friends includes black men who taught him the common street slang that describes tough, competitive, and admirable women as “nappy headed ho’s”, which, at least to him, and whomever he shares that vernacular, he, rather than being seen as a guy who is attempting dialectic parsimony, is being seen as a white racist pig, and the usually pandering media is compicit in more created scandal.
So what is his other option? I suppose he could just hang out with more white guys and others who are caught up in race pandering political correctness? Should he disavow whatever corner of black culture from which he derived this series of ghetto phrases? Maybe a better option would be to become involved in the activism to publicly explore the “Duke rape scandal” and all of the now completely debunked charges,as well as to get some new(old) white perspectives?
p.s.
I remember a day not long ago where, instead of merely whining about race remarks, the greater gaggle was honking about how womens basketball doesn’t get any funding, no publicity, and even less of an audience;-)
I feel the red queen effect in the house….the faster you run, the more you stay in place.
So: aren’t there any real issues out there? Real, front burner, important issues like Howard Sterns use of one legged women in bikini’s?
//If Don Imus has done any one thing wrong here, it is most likely that his circle of friends includes black men who taught him the common street slang that describes tough, competitive, and admirable women as “nappy headed ho’s”, which, at least to him, and whomever he shares that vernacular, he, rather than being seen as a guy who is attempting dialectic parsimony, is being seen as a white racist pig, and the usually pandering media is compicit in more created scandal.//
Ah! He’s NOT a racist pig. I get it now.
He’s a ridiculously naive, bubbleheaded idiot who can’t understand why calling young women, “nappy headed ho’s,” on air might not be such a good idea. Phew!
At least he’s not racist, eh?
By the way, I’m quite sure that if one of the professional entertainers in the Gangsta Rap world were watching this game, he would be very unlikely to refer to these young athletes as “nappy headed whores, and if he did, he would be doing something very wrong in most people’s eyes.
It is a mistake to think that the various racist and sexist terms that are used in common parlance in certain contexts are simply up for grabs or always mean the same thing.
Essence is my hero too!
The coach Vivian Stringer is a fabulous person as well.
These young women are showing America what it means to be decent, respectful, and honorable human beings.
Imus & Co, need to follow their example and take note!
Jennifer
I am honored to have been one of Essence Carson’s teachers in Paterson, NJ when she attended Martin Luther King, Jr. Elementary School. I have been following her career at Rutgers and am as proud of her as I am of my own children. Let me tell you that she deserves the respect that she always commanded. She is intelligent, creative, and has a great sense of humor. She is an extrodinary woman and it pained me for her to go through this “Imus” problem this week. Somehow, I’m sure that once again she will rise above this degradation and turn it into something benificial not only for herself but for our country.
//Somehow, I’m sure that once again she will rise above this degradation and turn it into something benificial not only for herself but for our country.//
I think she already has. She, her coach and her team have been a fabulous counter to Imus’ ignorance. There’s a level of grace, intelligence and reason those women have displayed that seems pretty rare these days and it’s wonderful to witness.
Greg:
“It is a mistake to think that the various racist and sexist terms that are used in common parlance in certain contexts are simply up for grabs or always mean the same thing.”
Sure, we know that. AND we know that Imus is a loudmouthed ass, whose mass market apeal was faltering anyways, due to a changing demographic. Which is why other loud mouthed asses like Al Sharpton are slowly filling slots across the nation. Ass appeal, but theoretically ’smart’ assed appeal.IMagine a world full of Sharpton? Better yet, don’t.
I would also think that you would find the comments of head coach a little disturbing as well when she replied that these women are
“young ladies of class, distinction.”….yes, they are, and “They are brilliant, they are articulate,” yes, the ones who spoke were to a large degree, and defied the stereotypes of ghetto basketballers, and were articulate in the non-Obamian sense of the word ( i better call the campaign headquarters to find out if my use of non-Obamian is politically correct: but whose campaign should I call? GW said it, Obama responded to it?)but then in the rebuttal we hear that the women are
“God’s representatives in every sense of the word.”
Yikes!! Five alarm preachathon! And no secular outcry to the injection of Jeezusz dad!
That is the meat of this hot potato. Where is the outcry?! God getting even more play on the court, and with such a crappy, meritless 4500 year old season!!
Yea, I got the God thing and was annoyed. But this team was overall articulate, and they are over 3.0 GPA which is good for a team. Remember that four or five of them were banned from speaking because of Rutgers rules about freshmen. So I’d give them the benefit of the doubt.
On the other hand, you’ve got to admit that going from a 40 point loss to the championship with no seniors, and this being the first Rutgers team to ever even make the finals, could possibly count as proof of a miracle. You know they were praying every day.
Which, by the way, would make Don Imus the Antichrist, right?
hawhawhawhaarrrrr;-)Big pirate shout out to God ;-)”could possibly count as proof of a miracle”
Yeah. I could go with Don as the A/C. He almost looks like the devil(Peter Fonda) in the latest NIck Cage movie Ghost Rider. Yeah…no seniors indeed!
why just a radio show or running MSNBC…why not “essence for president!”.. it’s never too early to get started…