Should Imus be fired?
While his comments were wrong, are they something he should be fired for? I dont' think so.
1-There is a double standard today, and until that is fixed if a minority can make similar jokes and keep his job, Imus should be able to also. I was listening to Steve Harvey about 3 weeks ago and he had a bit called 'Southern News' where he and his co-host put on fake southern accents and acted like sterotypical 'rednecks'. Making jokes about incest and your typical rednecks are stupid jokes. These are apparently fine, but jokes making of black women are not.
2-Don Imus does many great things for children because of his fame. He hosts a radiothon for SIDS every year that brings in millions of dollars. He also uses his fame to raise money for his Imus Ranch which helps children with cancer. These children live on a working ranch, and each get their own horse to take care of for a week. These are things that couldn't happen if he were not on the air to raise money.
That decision is entirely up to his employer. Everything comes down to money these days. Since having Imus is causing sponsors to drop out, then firing him would be the right decision. But is it fair? Of course not. Blacks have been using those words all the time. Not just on themselves, but on other races as well. In retrospect, Imus should've made fun of another race like the Arabs. Nobody would've care about making fun of them.
Well a man of his distinction and prominence should be just a little bit smarter than to say what he did on live radio and TV. He gets paid very well to be funny, not to humiliate minorities. I will agree that if he would have said something about white ball players with tattoos and long hair nobody would have cared.
Answer:
Ok I have so much to say about this.
First everyone is excusing what Imus said because WE (African Americans) have rappers who use the language.
Do you realize that when you listen to music on the radio it has a clean version of any song and also in stores? People have protested on the disgrace that rappers show to not only to African American but to all women. There are laws as to how their music CD's are sold (must be over 18). Imus has a show and is on the radio that is a totally different enterprise so how can you compare the two. To say that other people are doing is putting the blame on others for the use of his words; it still does not make it right.
Give him a second chance.
Imus has made comment on his show about race and sex against other minority on number of times. What brought him to the media is that he chooses to victims a team of young adult for no reason at all.
A joke.
With a joke you state the truth and make a joke on flaws that person has not use up seen word to disgrace someone. The comment 'Nappy Hair Hoes '. Majority of the team is African ( we know in history that African American are call Nappy haired) so to say nappy hair is a direct line to them, then to say hoes is to disregard the character of all the woman on that team.
How I feel
Being an African American woman with a daughter I don't care who says hoe or nappy hair I want justice. I do not buy, listen, or watch videos that disregard my race and sex, it not allowed in my house. I will look into the law against music with up seem words in them more now instead of ignoring it. But I REFUSE to ignore the comments that Imus stated because if that was my daughter on that team and he went on national TV to insult her for not reason at all I would want his job, even IF my daughter was white he still called her an hoe.
P.S Other people have been fired for less then comment what makes Imus so special, maybe “It who you know” more than what you know.
WHAT IS WORST:
What is worst is that if he made comments like that around those children. What no one gets is that hatred is something that is learned not something you are born with. Comment calling African Americans monkeys, hoes, grillers (Williams sisters), cleaning lady (this was a senator), a 'tough monkey' (Allen Iverson) and how about the sexists remarks on women (could not pick a player for the NAACP) then there are the comments about jewels (the antichrist). Just because someone does well in life doesn’t make it ok to do something bad, they don’t cancel each other out. Over the years he has continue to use disgraceful racist, sexist, and religion remarks (watch he has apologies for) then went back to do it again. Most people did not even know who Imus was which is why there was no up roar on the others but he used young adults to disrespect which is what brought him to the public attention to hold him accountable for is actions ( not just for the basketball team).
When you are a leader you have to watch what you say - If the president would have said that all people in Iraq were terrorist do you think we would be still over there.
Well, Imus do have the right to say what he wants and have a freedom of speech. But those comments were uncalled for and unprofessional because what the girls looked like physically had nothing to do what he was talking about in the first place. Secondly, the girls didn't do anything to deserve that type of comments besides, this wasn't his first time making offensive comments. Honestly, he should had kept that personal opinion to himself, just like Isaiah Washington and Mel Gibson. Just because he does great things for charity doesn't give him the right to humiliate others.
I think that firing him was too extreme. Although what he said was not funny, I don't think he should have lost his job. People are too worried about political correctness.
