"I think we've allowed a whole generation of young people to feel that if they're focused, they're not black enough. If they speak well and act well, they're acting white, and there's nothing more racist than that."
The key to leadership is taking the initiative to change things, said Sharpton.
...
"Nobody broke in my house in Brooklyn and dragged me out the projects and made me a leader, I wanted to do that. "
Exactly what needs to be heard. I usually don't agree with Sharpton, but this the right thing.
Now, how many of you remember Bill Cosby talking about this a few years ago?
The entire speech is a good read, but here's a sample.
"Kenneth Clark, somewhere in his home in upstate New York -- just looking ahead. Thank God he doesn’t know what’s going on. Thank God. But these people -- the ones up here in the balcony fought so hard. Looking at the incarcerated, these are not political criminals. These are people going around stealing Coca Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake! Then we all run out and are outraged: “The cops shouldn’t have shot him.” What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand? I wanted a piece of pound cake just as bad as anybody else. And I looked at it and I had no money. And something called parenting said if you get caught with it you’re going to embarrass your mother." Not, "You’re going to get your butt kicked." No. "You’re going to embarrass your mother." "You’re going to embarrass your family." If you knock that girl up, you’re going to have to run away because it’s going to be too embarrassing for your family.
In the old days, a girl getting pregnant had to go down South, and then her mother would go down to get her. But the mother had the baby. I said the mother had the baby. The girl didn’t have a baby. The mother had the baby in two weeks. We are not parenting. Ladies and gentlemen, listen to these people. They are showing you what’s wrong. People putting their clothes on backwards. Isn’t that a sign of something going on wrong? Are you not paying attention? People with their hat on backwards, pants down around the crack. Isn’t that a sign of something or are you waiting for Jesus to pull his pants up? Isn’t it a sign of something when she’s got her dress all the way up to the crack -- and got all kinds of needles and things going through her body. What part of Africa did this come from? We are not Africans. Those people are not Africans; they don’t know a damned thing about Africa."
Now, after Cosby's speech, what was the reaction?
"Bill Cosby has more harsh words for black community" San Francisco Chronicle July 1, 2004
- CHICAGO — 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." Fox News, Friday, July 02, 2004 (Associated Press)
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1 comment:
Well, they will think twice about attacking Sharpton knowing that he will attack back. I think this has to be the same for us Christians cuz a lot of times we just take it and move on. Sometimes that is the appropriate step but not all the time. We must defend and attack back against falsehood. The only thing we must do in that case is to make sure we sound formidable rather than blabbing nonesense which embarass us all.
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