CABBIE TAKES ON IMUS AND RAPPERS

By Marlene L. Johnson
4/15/07

“Hey, aren’t you the cabbie that used drive columnist Bill Raspberry around a lot before he retired from The Washington Post?” I asked as I entered the taxicab.

“Could be,” the cabbie said as I settled in. “Why you wanna know? Cab won’t be no cheaper.”

I know, I said. I just wondered because you used to give him a lot of wisdom.

He gave me a wry smile and said, “Yea, but that don’t come free. I paid a lot for it in drivin’ around town and hearin’ folk bad mouth each other. Blacks talk bad about whites. Whites talk REAL bad about blacks. Funny thing, though, they don’t talk to each other, just about each other… Like that Cowboy Imus, talkin’ about those girls and don’t even know them. He thought what he said was funny. Said he was jokin’. But he ain’t laughin’ now. Got hisself in big trouble.”

You’re right, I said. Calling the Scarlet Knight players “nappy headed hos” was like painting a scarlet letter on them. It was public humiliation. But some folks say that’s Ok because rappers do the same thing, call black women vicious, vile names just to sell CDs. And Imus has insulted lots of people and didn’t lose his job over it. He called Colin Powell, the first black secretary of state a “weasel.” He called former New Mexico governor Bill Richardson a “fat sissy,” and he called black journalist Gwen Ifill a cleaning lady. Now Imus spewed his venomous remarks at a group of innocent young college women and tried to hide behind the excuse that he learned it from rappers.

“He was right about one thing, though,” he said turning to me. “TRUTH BE KNOWN, black women do have Nappy Heads. N-A-P-P-Y !! Well, unless they use hot combs, perms or buy those mega-weaves and extensions. The man ain’t blind, just not as smart as he thought he was. Nothin’ wrong with him telling the truth. But there’s somethin’ wrong with callin’ black women hos. And that radio jockey says he didn’t mean nothin’ by callin’ them hos. Claims he’s a good man who done a bad thing. Wants us to forgive him,” the cabbie said scowling.

Yes, but with forgiveness comes consequences, I said. Forgiveness doesn’t mean he should just go on his merry way without repenting and suffering the consequences of his actions. He blames rappers, claiming he got the language from them, but white men have been calling black women hos and treating them like that since slavery days.

“It’s kinda funny him blamin’ rappers. Far as I knows this the first time a white man readily give a black man credit for anything. B’sides he shudda asked somebody if he don’t know what he’s doin’, like one a them well spoken black professors,” he said.

Yes, I don’t even know the hip-hop and rap culture all that well. To me ho is a five letter word that begins with and w and ends with re so I was thrown off by the rappers spelling. But I do know they were disrespecting black women.

“Yea, I don’t think those rappers shud be doin’ it either, disrespectin’ they mommas and sistahs on them CDs and videos,” he said.

Maybe they’re just trying to make a living the only way they know how. But that’s no excuse for degrading black women in their music. It sets a poor example for our youth, and as we found out, gives other folks license to do the same.

“What I say is that rappers are pimpin’ off black women. Sellin’ them out just to make money. Just like street pimps. They’re pimpin’ black women for white record labels,” the cabbie said.

Maybe it’s time we get serious about the issue of degrading black women and using derogatory language like the N word against our own folks. We shouldn’t allow anybody to do that, black or white.

“Right. If we don’t respect our women and ourselves, nobody else will. White guys already think all black women are loose. We gotta get those young rappers to stop putting dollars before good sense,” he said as he pulled up to my stop.

Imus has paid the price. He lost both of his gigs, radio and TV. Now maybe it’s time for the name calling rappers, and those who give them big bucks to do it, to pay the same price. Maybe that’s the only way to get them to stop spewing vile language about black women. Then maybe the females will start acting like ladies again.

“Yea, man, I agree, it’s time,” the cabbie said.

Catch you later man. Thanks.