Bill Cosby Has More Harsh Words for Black Community CHICAGO, Illinois (AP) -- Bill Cosby went off on another tirade against the black community Thursday, telling a room full of activists that black children are running around not knowing how to read or write and "going nowhere." He also had harsh words for struggling black men, telling them: "Stop beating up your women because you can't find a job." Cosby made headlines in May when he upbraided some poor blacks for their grammar and accused them of squandering opportunities the civil rights movement gave them. He shot back Thursday, saying his detractors were trying in vain to hide the black community's "dirty laundry." "Let me tell you something, your dirty laundry gets out of school at 2:30 every day, it's cursing and calling each other n------ as they're walking up and down the street," Cosby said during an appearance at the Rainbow/PUSH Coalition & Citizenship Education Fund's annual conference. "They think they're hip," the entertainer said. "They can't read; they can't write. They're laughing and giggling, and they're going nowhere." In his remarks in May at a commemoration of the anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education desegregation decision, Cosby denounced some blacks' grammar and said those who commit crimes and wind up behind bars "are not political prisoners." "I can't even talk the way these people talk, 'Why you ain't,' 'Where you is' ... and I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk," Cosby said then. "And then I heard the father talk ... Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth." Cosby elaborated Thursday on his previous comments in a talk interrupted several times by applause. He castigated some blacks, saying that they cannot simply blame whites for problems such as teen pregnancy and high school dropout rates. "For me there is a time ... when we have to turn the mirror around," he said. "Because for me it is almost analgesic to talk about what the white man is doing against us. And it keeps a person frozen in their seat, it keeps you frozen in your hole you're sitting in." Cosby lamented that the racial slurs once used by those who lynched blacks are now a favorite expression of black children. And he blamed parents. "When you put on a record and that record is yelling 'n----- this and n----- that' and you've got your little 6-year-old, 7-year-old sitting in the back seat of the car, those children hear that," he said. He also condemned black men who missed out on opportunities and are now angry about their lives. "You've got to stop beating up your women because you can't find a job, because you didn't want to get an education and now you're (earning) minimum wage," Cosby said. "You should have thought more of yourself when you were in high school, when you had an opportunity." Cosby appeared Thursday with the Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder and president of the education fund, who defended the entertainer's statements. "Bill is saying let's fight the right fight, let's level the playing field," Jackson said. "Drunk people can't do that. Illiterate people can't do that." Cosby also said many young people are failing to honor the sacrifices made by those who struggled and died during the civil rights movement. "Dogs, water hoses that tear the bark off trees, Emmett Till," he said, naming the black youth who was tortured and murdered in Mississippi in 1955, allegedly for whistling at a white woman. "And you're going to tell me you're going to drop out of school? You're going to tell me you're going to steal from a store?" Cosby also said he wasn't concerned that some whites took his comments and turned them "against our people." "Let them talk," he said.
I know Bill is trying to prove a point and get black people moving in the right direction, but his comments could be used for anybody that wastes their chances at getting a good education and bettering themselves.
Cosby appeared Thursday with the Rev. Jesse Jackson, founder and president of the education fund, who defended the entertainer's statements. "Bill is saying let's fight the right fight, let's level the playing field," Jackson said. "Drunk people can't do that. Illiterate people can't do that." This is the most interesting part of this article. JJ added his liberal voice to Cosby's conservative voice should help get their message out.
Yes, but he's black, and is using his opportunities to spread this message through the black community. These speeches have been sorely needed for some time now. Given the chance, I would give the same speeches to Hispanic communities. Everyone just wants to see others like them succeed.
Has anyone heard any rumors regarding why Bill Cosby is saying these things NOW? Is he going to move into politics? Is he going to become some sort of civil rights leader?
Bill Cosby has no right to tell someone how to raise a kid and be a good family man. His son was a drug addict and he cheated on his wife. Get your own house in order Cos.
pgab, if it's possible, can you assess the message in and of itself, separate from your valid comment about Cosby's own life? I think he just sounds like a cranky old man. It's not my community; I'm just interested in the topic. One interesting angle from my perspective is that the type of attitude he's describing is sooo appealing to non-African Americans, particularly (from what I can tell at a very diverse university) young people of south Asian and east Asian origins. I'm reading Ralph Wiley's "Why Black People Tend to Shout" (title something like that, sorry), and I feel like I'm learning a lot. I grew up very comfy with a strongly multiracial community south of Houston, and I feel like I have a lot of first-hand data from friends of what it's like to grow up black. But again, not for me to say or judge certainly.
B-Bob I really don't understand where Cosby is coming from with these particular comments. He sounds like a cranky out of touch old man. Cosby has always been somewhat conservative. We all remember Eddie Murphy's routine from Raw when Cosby told him not to curse and I always felt he tried promote conservative values through his show. But Cosby has a superiority complex. He thinks he can tell people how to behave because he had a number one hit TV show. Its no different from when liberal entertainers express their views about the world. Its funny that when an entertainer has a conservative view, the conservatives on this board have no problem agreeing with the "Hollywood Types". But back to Cosby, I've always felt this way about him. The guy has a number one TV show about family, and he decides he's an authority on fatherhood, because he could solve his Brady Bunch type problems on the show. He just seems very arrogant. As far as these recent comments, I don't know where he is coming from with the whole "you've got to stop beating up your women because you can't find a job" routine. That's just flat out ridiculous, and out there. I have no idea what he's is talking about. I have no idea who these people are that he talks to.
Why shouldn't a white guy be able to say something? Out of fear of being called a racist? I refuse to let someone racial insecurity determine what I'm "allowed" or "not allowed" to say. Don't get me wrong, I'm not out to hurt someone or make light of any serious situation, but the message behind Cosby's words wasn't too far off and it doesn't just apply to black kids. There are just as many white knucklehead kids doing the exact same things Bill mentioned.
Agreed. I was more interested in his "drop out" comments, and the hipness of rebuking school, being tough, rebuking grammar, etc., which is a broad phenomenon beyond any one community. Cosby's arrogant. But I always prefer famous people who want to make a difference to famous people who just care about their next plastic surgery and what overpriced place they want to have lunch next. Know what I mean? Not to say Cosby will make any positive difference though.
Growing up in a lower to middle class neighborhood, I don't think black kids growing up in poor areas despise education or find it hip to drop out of school or whatever. I think their is a lack of respect for the importance education. I think parents are the main ones responsible for this. But kids don't think its cool to be uneducated. On the contrary they probably feel hopeless and see no need for applying themselves.
I had a co-worker tell me that when she was in HS and was very involved with her education, people told her she was "acting white". How prevalent is this?
couldn't have said it better myself. regardless of Bill's motives, he is right to a large extent. a lot of people (not just black) try and act all "gangsta"just to look "cool". unfortunately, that aint gonna get em anywhere in life.
