Could You Call Oprah A Nappy-Headed Ho?
Sunday Morning commentator Nancy Giles responds to the controversy over Don Imus's remarks about the Rutgers women's basketball team. She says sexist, racist humor isn't funny anymore.
Try calling Oprah a nappy-headed ho...
So now "Imus in the Morning" is history, and an aging, wanna-be "hip" shock jock bites the dust. Okay. But what about the other highly-paid and big-money-generating windbags like Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Michael Savage, Glenn Beck and Pat Robertson? Where's the outrage there?
For that matter, can we once and for all boycott the rap and hip-hop performers and the record labels who've generated billions by disrespecting women and "re-branding" self-hate into a cool cultural phenomenon. Hel-looo!
And just so you know, the women of the Rutgers basketball team were way too busy competing, breaking records, and putting themselves through college to be "hos." And none of them had nappy hair, either. Oh, before I forget, here's a general rule: Never, ever talk about a black woman and her hair. Just don't do it. It's too loaded. Too historic. Too judgmental. Too many products. It's just too — just leave it alone. Trust me.
The one silver lining here is that Don Imus' offensive remark has the whole country talking. And it's about time we talk about matters of race, gender and class. But take a look at who controls the conversation: Rush Limbaugh, Bill O'Reilly, Sean Hannity, Tucker Carlson, Joe Scarborough, Anderson Cooper, Charles Gibson, Brian Williams, Keith Obermann, Bill Maher, John Stewart, Stephen Colbert, Al Franken, Howard Stern, and Opie and Anthony.
From network and cable news, to morning drive and talk radio, and even satirical comedy on TV, it's a mostly white male boys' club, both in front and behind the scenes. And that's got to change.
Women are a presence in mass media. But more women's voices must be heard. We can do morning drive and talk radio. More of us should be in the mix. We've earned it. We work, consume, vote, and we're in the majority. Hey, we gave birth to you guys! (Well, some of us did — I personally didn't, but you get my point.) Even Imus has a mother.
Because guys, this just isn't funny anymore.