TheGibsonReport.today.com

Finally… what should have happened last week, happened this week - Don Imus is off the air completely, FOR NOW! But then, I predicted on April 10th that Imus would not be returning to the airwaves. In fact, we should thank Don Imus for being stupid and culturally deprived enough to say things that most Americans just will not tolerate. And for having people around him who couldn’t prop up his better judgment with theirs. In other words, his listeners really do reflect not very silent majority. And that may well demonstrate the growth of this country since the death of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr., Mrs. Coretta Scott King, and Rosa Parks.

The real value of Don Imus is that he reflects those marginalized men who still believe that white males should rule; history shows it’s their brain damage that assumes that pubic hair is a genuine requirement for being part of the PUBLIC! I’ve long had experience of white men who live in different time zoneS. As a young reporter in Boston in the late 1970s, I watched Jimmy the Greek attempt to demean me when he told a white male assistant that the question I had just asked him was “stupid.” His obvious sneer of disdain IN FRONT OF ME… was the same as saying I was a “nappy hair ho.” I never told anyone about his bad behavior; I knew it was not just my race that caused a big, ugly, overweight, white male, full of righteousness and food stains, to believe he was superior to me. I just did my job and filed my six o’clock TV report. The fact that Imus never “got it” (that he was offensive) also shows the extent to which time has passed him by and the extent to which a priviledged environment can hurt.

But I can assure you that after he met with the coach and women of the Rutgers University women’s basketball team at the governor’s mansion in New Jersey on a Thursday night… he will never be the same ! In spite of what he claimed to the contrary, I have absolutely no doubt that one DON IMUS had a “coming to Jesus moment.” You see, when you are not exposed to people who are different from you, as Dr. King observed, you are at a tremendously disadvantaged. So I am encouraged to see that this is not really a black or white issues, a male or female issue, but an issue of being human in a civilized society.

Imus and his studio producer “pre-judged” some extrordinary women… and that is the very definition of prejudice. Yet, contrary to the claims of Al Sharpton, the Imus remarks were not really about what was said on the airwaves BUT what a stupid individual said in the 21st century about some young ladies who really symbolize the American dream. It would have been just as wrong if Imus had made the same remarks to a bunch of print reporters. Moreover, the very fact that no one in the Imus circle censored the remarks about “hardcore ho’s” or any of his past repugnant remarks that denigrated women… is revealing. Imus AND HIS suporters just didn’t get it - the times have changed.

So thank you Don Imus for being the one to raise the awareness of America, again, that times have indeed really changed; make no mistake, he will continue to have supporters among the uneducated or conservative audience members, regardless of color or gender. Perhaps, the good thing about Don Imus’ behavior is that he has brought more attention to the fact that BET, Russel Simons, Nelly, Snoop Doog, and others continue to sell out the Black community with videos that degrade young women of color… while making millionaires of Hip Hop artists. It’s time to tell those young stupid Black males who are so dirty between their legs that they can’t pull up their pants… that it is time to stop imitating loser jail behavior. So let’s start the healing by forgiving DON IMUS, applauding CBS (formerly Westwood One); NBC for finally realizing that the times have changed. Let’s, instead, demand an end to the garbage that comes from Black and White music producers. And let’s ask why only Cal Ripkin initially “got it” and refused to appear on Imus In the Morning. In fact, why did feminists, churches, and John McCain not get the bigger picture and respond quicker to remind Imus that he was out of sync with American values.

Under what conditions does Don Imus does deserve another chance?

He blew the privileged he had; he really didn’t get what it meant to share power. Until he met with the young ladies of the Rutgers team, Don Imus had no clue that he was profoundly wrong. But then, most African-American have been progressing inspite of the short-comings of those who still have a slavery mentality.

It’s easy to predict that Don Imus will be back on the airwaves in less than a year because some station somewhere will hire him because he has a well-known name and an audience that listen to him because they admire what he did when he degrated two categories: women and Blacks. Believe me, someone will want to make money off of him. But you can count on Don Imus never again having the impact he once had - he’s been transformed and that may not be good for radio.

Thanks for healing, Don!