Cosby, Saying the Darndest Things

• Bill Cosby was anything but politically correct in his remarks Monday night at a Constitution Hall bash commemorating the 50th anniversary of the Brown v. Board of Education decision. To astonishment, laughter and applause, Cosby mocked everything from urban fashion to black spending and speaking habits.





Bill Cosby, ready to let off steam. (Lawrence Jackson - AP)
"Ladies and gentlemen, the lower economic people are not holding up their end in this deal," he declared. "These people are not parenting. They are buying things for kids -- $500 sneakers for what? And won't spend $200 for 'Hooked on Phonics.' . . . clp)

"They're standing on the corner and they can't speak English," he exclaimed. "I can't even talk the way these people talk: 'Why you ain't,' 'Where you is' . . . And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk. . . . Everybody knows it's important to speak English except these knuckleheads. . . . You can't be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!"

The Post's Hamil Harris reports that Cosby also turned his wrath to "the incarcerated," saying: "These are not political criminals. These are people going around stealing Coca-Cola. People getting shot in the back of the head over a piece of pound cake and then we run out and we are outraged, [saying] 'The cops shouldn't have shot him.' What the hell was he doing with the pound cake in his hand?"clp)

When Cosby finally concluded, Howard University President H. Patrick Swygert, NAACP President Kweisi Mfume and NAACP legal defense fund head Theodore Shaw came to the podium looking stone-faced. Shaw told the crowd that most people on welfare are not African American, and many of the problems his organization has addressed in the black community were not self-inflicted.



Gotta agree with Dr.Cosby on this one 100%.Time to begin calling out the truth in our community.Like Chris Rock said " I love Black people,but I hate n*****s.:P

gotta be feeling cosby on the language talk

@Burning Spear, I agree that black community should honestly examine what the problems and stop this head in the sand routine but is this the way to do it.

Mr. Cosby's remarks seemed to reeked of ridicule and yes racisminstead of constructive criticism.

The blackcommunity already receives enough mud slanging, stereotyping, and negative feelings from the white community as it is,isright forone our own who was lucky enough to reach stardom to come out against other blacks and throw his log on to the fire of hatred for black people, especially in the presences of somewhites whothink negatively of blacks already?

Sorry but I know of no other race of man or type of animal who will glandly sh!T on his brother for the sheer pleasure of outsiders!:X

the soul machine wrote:
^^^^^^

Am I the only person who finds this post somewhat hypocritical?

Nope you're not. I see where the lad is coming from mind.I've always got crap off peoplefor having a poshaccent. I will never use slang or TXT either which should be banned, and allusers of it should be executed.

However I agree with Cosby, might of made a better impact if his audience waspredominatly black though..

Might this have anything to do with the circumstances in which his son was killed a few years back? I gather the killer was white, but I could see how that might make him less than sympathetic to 'lower economic people', as he puts it.

Even without that, he's talking about things that need discussing and resolving. Not sure the condescending tone helps, tho maybe he felt it needed that to get a reaction.

Spice: I'm going to have to agree with you AGAIN...you talked a lot of sense and looked beyond the sound bites well said...

Burning Spear: I agree that we need to be 'mature' about some of the serious issues within our communities in America and the UK..there is definately a lot of crap going on.. and I for one will not defence people who are demostrating bad behaviour...

However whilst I totally respect Bill Crosby not just for his TV work but also his more than genorous contributions to Black charities.. On this issue he is being a totally dishonest and superfical.

It is interesting that he aimed his remarks at the 'Lower Economic people' but did not explore how they either became that way or remain that way.. Its all well and good mocking those people whom he says can't talk properly.. But why didn't he mock the education system that colluded with it, the media who promoted such ignorance or those moguls who now get rich, (very rich) of this Ghetto lifestyle..

I also found it interesting assuming that this is the whole speech, that he never questioned the role or responsibility of the African American Intelligensia or the Allfluent in challenging the dumbing down of their youth and their culture on a daily basis.. To point has he does at the 'lower economic people' and mock them..but then ignores the 'i'm alright jack' mentally of those who have the power to stop or control this climate is for me totally disengenous.

But really bugs me, is that it was a cheap shot to write off all those in prison as 'criminals' without looking to goverment and asking legitimate questions about Gun ownership..what it is doing to undermine the drug culture that is threatening to take over much of the Western world.. It all well and good blaming the victims of this criminal behaviour...But where is the serious questions about guns and their ease of accessibility... Where is the Serious questions about Drugs and their ease of availability?

Hell these two issues that has to be the biggest killer of our people since slavery is NOT even on the political agenda...is that the fault of the Lower Economic People or those in position of power like him..who should be influencing this agenda....cheap shot Bill cheap shot!!

I agree he did not cover it fully, no point in just cussing the end product, even though he made valid points.

But it did not say anywhere that his audience was white did it?

PEacE~

Hmmmmmmmmmmmm - I think Bill Cosby sold it big time.

When was the last time he lived in the "Real World"? It's all well and good coming out of your big ass house with secured fencing, jumping in your big ride and judging those you see (I can imagine) only on TV.

Maybe he - like many others forgot how they struggled in the early years trying to climb that ladder