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How To Learn from Imus? Listen

Al Sharpton

Contributed by Brian Krenz on 6/15/07

In the wake of now defunct talk-radio host Don Imus’ sexist and racist remarks, the nation has a long way to go to becoming a truly color-blind, bigotry-free society. Imus’ remarks sparked a national debate about race and gender equality in a nation that had become largely complacent after the push for civil and women’s rights in the 1960s and 1970s. I have said many times that we needed to renew this discussion, and as hideous as Imus’ remarks were, if something truly beneficial for the nation can come from them, then maybe it will have been worth it.

But in order for that to happen, we have to keep the discussion open and equitable. And when I say keep the discussion open, I don’t mean the discussion about what Imus said. That’s over. He apologized. He lost his job. Despite the fact that Imus has said horribly racist things in the past, I have to say that I believe him when he says he’s not a completely bad person. He is, however, a racist. And hopefully he will work to undo years of prejudice by turning himself into a positive role model. But the real point is that if we don’t move the discussion forward from what Imus said to other, more pressing matters to do with race and gender, nothing good will come of the sensationalist cowboy’s folly. And if everyone - conservative or liberal, steadfast Imus fan or Al Sharpton backer - does not take up this discussion in a fair and understanding way, then too will nothing good come of the gaff.

And we need something good to rise from these offensive ashes. Too much inequality surrounds us today. Women in the U.S., on average, earn 76 cents on the dollar compared to men. In 2005, black households in America earned on average almost $20,000 less than white households according to the U.S. Census. Also according to the Census, just over 11 percent of whites are uninsured while almost 20 percent of blacks are. The racial gap between inner-city schools and their more affluent suburban counterparts is astounding - a Harvard study last year noted that school segregation had reached the highest level in fifteen years.

As long as these, and other disparities, remain true, we must maintain an open dialogue. These are real issues that unfortunately are not as simple as the way I’m presenting them - my tendency, as well as many others I’m sure, is always to say, “Well why hasn’t anybody fixed these things yet?” The trouble is it’s never that simple. One thing we know though, is that the first step is talking reasonably about these issues.

The problem is that people, more often than not it seems, misunderstand what a reasonable discussion about important issues like these should sound like. In the wake of Imus’ remarks, a furor of comments aimed at gunning down rap artists for their often demeaning lyrics has exploded. Rev. Al Sharpton recently sparred, “We’re going to warn the music industry they’re next. I’m going to tell them my momma wasn’t no ho, and my daughters ain’t no bitches!” Sharpton may be right. Rap lyrics may need to be re-examined. (And in fact they are being re-examined. This past Wednesday, hip hop magnate Russell Simmons held the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network for industry executives to meet in New York to discuss sexist and misogynistic lyrics in rap music.) But using the reasoning that because Imus must go down, so too must hip hop isn’t fair. It ignores the startling differences between rap artists and Don Imus, the differences between music and talk-radio and oversteps the bounds of reasonable discussion. It’s an eye-for-eye mentality that won’t get us anywhere. It’s partisan bickering. Is rap music sometimes demeaning? Yes, just as Don Imus was racist. But comments like Sharpton’s, aimed only at escalating the argument, just enrage the hip hop community. The bottom line is that there is a legitimate discussion to be had about the state of lyrics in much of mainstream music today, just as there is a legitimate discussion to be had about the state of talk-radio today and the state of gender and racial equality as a whole. But that discussion needs to be amicable. Each side needs to listen to the other.

Ernest Hemingway once said, “I like to listen. I have learned a great deal from listening carefully. Most people never listen.” The sad truth is that Hemingway was right - most people don’t listen. But he’s also right that we can learn a great deal from listening carefully. So let’s start doing it. We need to continue this discussion about race and gender, but we need to do it in a conscientious, open-minded manner. Only then can something truly good come of Imus’ remarks and not just partisan bickering.