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Ms. Harriet Tubman
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From Sheila C. Johnson, Owner of Washington Mystics “I urge CBS to cut all ties to Mr. Imus. As an African American woman, the owner of the WNBA’s Washington Mystics, and the mother of a female athlete, I found his comments reprehensible and am appalled that CBS continues to offer Mr. Imus a platform for his hateful remarks. He crossed the line. The airwaves should not be used to promote racism, sexism or bigotry. *** From Atlanta-based 100 Black Men of America The 100 Black Men of America, Inc. demands of MSNBC and CBS Radio the immediate dismissal of Don Imus for his racist, demeaning, derogatory, and sexist comments concerning the Rutgers University Woman’s Basketball Team. The 100 Black Men of America, Inc. finds that this calculated utilization of the public air waves to promote racial stereotypes, bigotry and hatred through the veiled shield of humor is repugnant, and unacceptable to our community. We submit to MSNBC and CBS Radio that a two week suspension doesn’t serve as a severe enough punishment. We at the 100 Black Men of America express our proudest congratulations to Coach C. Vivian Stringer, the assistant coaches and the women of The Rutgers University Scarlet Knights for their outstanding season. Their achievement of earning their way to the NCAA Women’s Basketball finals can be attributed to their hard work, dedication, determination, acumen and pride. We salute you, your coaching staff and your families for helping guide you, nurture you and develop you into the beautiful young women that you are. Albert E. Dotson, Jr., Esq Chairman of the Board 100 Black Men of America, Inc.
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From Earl C. Graves, Sr., Founder, Chairman and Publisher of Black Enterprise Magazine Don Imus was fired today and that was the only appropriate response for his misuse and abuse of the public airwaves to once again utter racist and sexist rants—in this case, inexplicably denigrating the Lady Knights basketball team of Rutgers University by calling them “nappy-headed hos.” MSNBC and CBS were wise to pull the plug on Imus. A growing number of advertisers, including American Express, General Motors, and Procter and Gamble, had already withdrawn support of his broadcasts. This is not about how sorry Imus is about having made his unfortunate remarks or whether he is a good person. This incident is evidence of a greater issue in our society. As much work as has gone into the equalization and advancement of African Americans in this country, we still have much work to do. Federal airways cannot be used to promote racism and sexism, and the fact that we are still a minority presence in broadcast media is a problem. Where is the responsible representation of African Americans in media today? Where are our national news anchors; the job opportunities in media; healthy, family-oriented programming? Until we are properly represented in every industry, especially national media, incidents like this one will continue to occur. And how are African Americans to react overall to this incident? We should consider it another, rude wake-up call.
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Statement by the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials on the Don Imus Remarks
From the President of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials (NBC-LEO), Terry Riley, councilman, Kansas City, Mo., on behalf of all NBC-LEO officers
It is unconscionable that in this day Don Imus would be comfortable saying such hateful and hurtful phrases about the women’s basketball players at Rutgers University. The Rutgers players are talented young women who have carried themselves in a manner that brings pride to their university, their coaches and fellow students as well as the African-American community. Their reaction to this situation has been nothing short of dignified, a fact Mr. Imus would fail to prove otherwise. It is essential that African-American political leaders stand united and send a resounding message to Mr. Imus that his comments were highly disrespectful and will not be tolerated anywhere in this nation. We, the members of the National Black Caucus of Local Elected Officials who are charged with being the voice of our electorate, will not stand quietly complacent and allow our daughters to be demoralized.
We call on the media to review the actions and words, not only of Mr. Imus, but of all broadcasters in the coming months to ensure they are fair and objective chroniclers of today’s society, reflecting the broad diversity that is America. NBC-LEO was created in 1970 to represent the interests of African-American elected officials. NBC-LEO’s objectives include increasing African-American participation on the NLC’s steering and policy committees to ensure that policy and program recommendations reflect African-American concerns and benefit their communities. The organization also works independently with its members to inform them on issues affecting the African-American community and helps to devise ways to achieve their community objectives through legislation and direct action. In 2005, NBC-LEO worked with eBay to end the use of racially derogatory words on listings on eBay’s Web site.
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