AKA
08-14-2004, 12:30 AM
Bill Cosby has seen poverty, wealth and merits a voice
By Ronn McDuffy
The Olympian
Recently, Bill Cosby came under attack for his verbal assaults on low-income and imprisoned blacks, and many are wondering why now.
Cosby's parents, one a laborer and the other a domestic, raised him in a project in Philadelphia. Cosby launched his successful entertainment career during the early 1960s when stand-up was in its heyday. Because of his success and public appeal, he was selected to be the first Afro-American guest host of the Tonight Show.
Two years later, Cosby was the first Afro-American star of a television drama -- I Spy. Black America was giddy over the success of a fellow Afro-American. In the entertainment industry, Cosby became the catalyst for bringing "unapologetic but nonconfrontational blackness into mainstream America."
In May of this year, during the NAACP's Brown v. Board of Education 50th anniversary gala event at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., Cosby scolded young Afro-American males for acts of domestic violence, blasted blacks for poor parenting in the ghettoes, railed about Ebonics and chastised young blacks for squandering away the hard-earned gains of the civil rights movement. In the presence of NAACP President Kweisi Mfume and other Afro-American leaders, during the July 1 Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference in Chicago, Cosby again lambasted low-income blacks. On this occasion, he focused on the low-income blacks' poor reading and writing skills and their lack of initiative to make a better life for themselves and their children.
Cosby's outbursts have confounded people all along the socioeconomic scale, and everyone is searching for answers as to why now and the venue in which he has opted to voice his displeasure. After all, most frown upon airing their dirty laundry in public.
Cosby has contributed a large amount of his money and time promoting Black America; therefore, he has earned a voice in the Afro-American community. He has a vision of what Black American should look like, and he is not pleased with what he sees.
Cosby has spent decades attempting to improve race relations, and recently, Cosby said he was tired, but not from lack of energy to fight his critics. He was referring to the continuing battles, which he feels should have been won decades ago. In fact, blacks have progressed since the racial barriers began to fall during the '60s, and because of figures like Cosby, whites have slowly shed their prejudices and opinionated views about blacks.
In fact, statistics show that the black middle class has dramatically expanded, and vast improvements have been made in economic achievement, family stability and education. However, there is a segment of the black community that has not taken advantage of the opportunities offered in today's more open and tolerant society. There are a number of people across the socioeconomic scale who believe that Cosby has sold out.
I am in disagreement with their assessment. Bill Cosby has lived on both ends of the socioeconomic scale, and he has dedicated his life to the betterment of his race. He is 67 years old and feels time is running out.
Ronn McDuffy is a member of the Olympian's Diversity Panel. He can be reached at ronmcd@msn.com.
By Ronn McDuffy
The Olympian
Recently, Bill Cosby came under attack for his verbal assaults on low-income and imprisoned blacks, and many are wondering why now.
Cosby's parents, one a laborer and the other a domestic, raised him in a project in Philadelphia. Cosby launched his successful entertainment career during the early 1960s when stand-up was in its heyday. Because of his success and public appeal, he was selected to be the first Afro-American guest host of the Tonight Show.
Two years later, Cosby was the first Afro-American star of a television drama -- I Spy. Black America was giddy over the success of a fellow Afro-American. In the entertainment industry, Cosby became the catalyst for bringing "unapologetic but nonconfrontational blackness into mainstream America."
In May of this year, during the NAACP's Brown v. Board of Education 50th anniversary gala event at Constitution Hall in Washington, D.C., Cosby scolded young Afro-American males for acts of domestic violence, blasted blacks for poor parenting in the ghettoes, railed about Ebonics and chastised young blacks for squandering away the hard-earned gains of the civil rights movement. In the presence of NAACP President Kweisi Mfume and other Afro-American leaders, during the July 1 Rainbow/PUSH Coalition and Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference in Chicago, Cosby again lambasted low-income blacks. On this occasion, he focused on the low-income blacks' poor reading and writing skills and their lack of initiative to make a better life for themselves and their children.
Cosby's outbursts have confounded people all along the socioeconomic scale, and everyone is searching for answers as to why now and the venue in which he has opted to voice his displeasure. After all, most frown upon airing their dirty laundry in public.
Cosby has contributed a large amount of his money and time promoting Black America; therefore, he has earned a voice in the Afro-American community. He has a vision of what Black American should look like, and he is not pleased with what he sees.
Cosby has spent decades attempting to improve race relations, and recently, Cosby said he was tired, but not from lack of energy to fight his critics. He was referring to the continuing battles, which he feels should have been won decades ago. In fact, blacks have progressed since the racial barriers began to fall during the '60s, and because of figures like Cosby, whites have slowly shed their prejudices and opinionated views about blacks.
In fact, statistics show that the black middle class has dramatically expanded, and vast improvements have been made in economic achievement, family stability and education. However, there is a segment of the black community that has not taken advantage of the opportunities offered in today's more open and tolerant society. There are a number of people across the socioeconomic scale who believe that Cosby has sold out.
I am in disagreement with their assessment. Bill Cosby has lived on both ends of the socioeconomic scale, and he has dedicated his life to the betterment of his race. He is 67 years old and feels time is running out.
Ronn McDuffy is a member of the Olympian's Diversity Panel. He can be reached at ronmcd@msn.com.