Looking Back on When I Was a Little Nappy Headed Boy

@ParaTed2k (22940)
Sheboygan, Wisconsin
April 10, 2007 8:11am CST
Ok, someone explain to me how this "Looking Back on When I Was a Little Nappy Headed Boy" can be a classic line of lyrics, but "Nappy Headed Hos" is "racist"? Ok, ok, I'll given that is was a stupid thing for Imus to say and was meant to be insulting, but come on, you can insult Black people without being racist!
4 people like this
8 responses
• United States
10 Apr 07
For a white man to call a black women a nappy headed hoe is racist.. for a black man to call a black women a nappy head ho is also racist. it just so happen in this case you have a very over opinonated white male... who has been relicued before for his outlandish comments...Nappy Headed is not like the "N" word to blacks although I can understand the concept. Being called nappy headed has a deeper meaing, before being called nappy headed was classified as being ugly and un-becoming it wasn't until recently black people have grown to love their natural beauty which for so long other races protrayed to be ugly... I think the major problem is how he used the term NAPPY HEADED HOE'S...it was slander...and very degrading... where was his filtering station... it was uncalled for... If it were a black Man who said look at those blond headed hoe's he would have got the same hype as the white man... why do we always have to make it a white and black thing... how about it just being a wrong thing... in which he never should have made that comment period... AND you can't compare a racist statment to a poetic lyric in a song... two different catagories of expression... You can insult black people without being racist... Please Explain????
3 people like this
• United States
11 Apr 07
I just soon insult no one.. And I can't understand people who do it. Calling women hos or b*tches as is done, well, it ain't right! When I used to hear the young men do it I would lecture them.. and grind my teeth.. I don't think it's right to insult Pres. Bush either! But that's pretty acceptable.. Course I didn't agree with insulting Pres. Clinton either. I don't think we are half so fair and enlightened as we like to think we are..
2 people like this
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
yes, it was very degrading and insulting, but then again Imus has never been known for his tact. You say that if it were a Black man saying the same thing he would get the same hype? NOPE. Black Rappers say worse than this everyday and get nothing. Radio talk show host Mike McGee in Wisconsin regularly makes remarks against Whites, Latinos, Gays and pretty much anyone who isn't Black and never got anything like this. Why can't I compare the two categories of expression, if "nappy headed" is racist it's racist, it shouldn't matter who said it. Of course you can insult a Black person without being racist. George Forman is ugly and his mother dresses him funny!! Was that racist?
1 person likes this
@Idlewild (6090)
• United States
10 Apr 07
'you can insult Black people without being racist!' Hmmm... I'm not sure of the logic of that, but anyway... I think 'nappy headed' is kind of like the 'n' word, for blacks to use it among themselves is one thing, for someone outside that race to use it is another. I know Italians, Polish people, etc. who will joke around with each other using ethnic insults, and it's all in fun. But if someone who's not in that ethnic group calls one of them by those names, it might start a fight. I don't like the term 'ho' used by anyone, to refer to anyone.
3 people like this
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
So if I said that Chris Rock is a bean pole you would consider that racist? As for the rest of your comment, are you really saying that the only reason what he said was wrong was because he is white?
1 person likes this
@winky73 (1404)
• United States
13 Apr 07
That's what it sounds like....doesn't it?So would that not make it a racist statement as well? I'm German and have been called a Nazi,Krauthead and a lot of other things by people that are not German.....but I don't get all up in arms about it. In most cases it's just in good fun and if someone uses something like that to try to be mean.....than I just have to feel sorry for them.Using something that another person has no control over as a insult.....shows how ignorant this person really is.
@KrisNY (7590)
• United States
10 Apr 07
Not only was Imus racist-- He was putting down all women! Ho's?? For what reason- Did the team do something to offend him personally? For any radio personality to pick on young women is just wrong- It's all fun and games when he picks on pro athletes- but college kids?? Give me a break! The whole team isn't black-- I think it was wrong regardless is it was meant to be racist or not!
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
Oh great, now anytime anyone anywhere calls someone a "ho", they are personally insulting every woman in the whole world?I doubt all the basketball players fit the definition, but there are women in this world who are, in fact, "hos", "bimbos" (and a few terms that apparently violate the MyLot TOS). Just because there are women who fit the definition doesn't mean ALL women do. Talk about generalizing!
@Smith2028 (797)
• United States
11 Apr 07
Racism is in the eyes and ears of your enemy. Anything said or done can be construed as racist. I don't agree with it, nor do I agree with what Imus said, but Political Correctness is getting out of hand.
2 people like this
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
I agree, when simple insults are now grounds for getting fired, something's wrong. How weak a society have we become?
@Destiny007 (5805)
• United States
10 Apr 07
Something is racist when a certain ethnic group decides to view it as racist. This could apply to any ethnic group, but the one that is most commonly inclined to consider something as racist once again does not disappoint. The term nappy headed is stereotypical, but falls short of being racist. Of course that depends on who you ask, and is subject to debate. Some would find it distasteful, perhaps unnecessary, while others would see it as grounds for immediate dismissal and even better...immediate execution. It all depends on how a person chooses to view it, and whether or not they choose to be offended. There is a thing now called being politically correct. What we are seeing here is what can happen if you do something that is considered outside the bounds of political correctness. What we are seeing here is also a fine example of reverse racism. If a black man would have said that, it would have barely caused a ripple. Since a white guy said it, he needs to be fired, subjected to censure and ridicule and held up as an example to the next person who would be foolish enough to even hint at saying anything that a black person might perceive as being even faintly insulting. Reverse racism has been a problem in this country for many years. I have had black people actually tell me that I "owed" them because of slavery. Not only have I never owned any slaves, to my knowledge neither have any of my ancestors, and I informed those particular individuals of that fact and told them that I didn't owe them anything. They didn't like it much, but oh well. While Imus' comments may have been insensitive, I don't see how they could be construed as racist, unless someone was just waiting for an excuse to accuse someone. To me, that is being racist. There are organizations that only exist for as long as racism exists, and in order to survive they had to try to find examples of it, even if it means making them up. Certain preachers owe their success to pointing out the rampant racism in our community and depend on it staying healthy in order to maintain there power and influence. To these people, an apology is not sufficient. These are the one's calling for Imus' firing, saying that his apology just doesn't cover the damage that he has done to those poor and fragile players that the comment was directed at. Imus was not talking about a bunch of blacks. He was talking about a bunch of players that happened to be black, and made a joke at their expense. For all the dust that is being kicked up, you would think he had used the N word, but he didn't. Then there are the 1st Amendment issues that this could lead into. He was stating an opinion and observation, and now he is being censured for it.
2 people like this
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
I agree, racism has become an excuse to shut someone up simply because you don't agree with them... I wonder how many of the team members have called each other "ho". PC is nothing more than the tyranny of the minority.
@soccermom (3198)
• United States
10 Apr 07
I have quite a few "black" friends, and I've asked there opinions on this. Most of them don't think it's that big of a deal, and one friend even said that Imus should have called them "nappy headed d*kes." I haven't heard the clip from Imus yet, so I can't come to a conclusion on whether it was racist or not, but my feeling was it probably wasn't intended as rascist. I can totally see where you are coming from with the "you can insult Black people without being racist." Our black friends insult my husbands skin color all the time, they aren't racist.
@Idlewild (6090)
• United States
10 Apr 07
Joking around with friends is one thing, your friends know your husband and obviously feel they can rib him. To me the most offensive thing was calling them 'hos.' And this wasn't some rap CD calling women in general hos (a CD that people can choose to buy or not buy), it was a national broadcaster publicly calling a specific group of college students hos--young women who the broadcaster does not know at all, and who have done nothing to deserve being called names like that. (By the way, if the team was all white, I wonder if Imus would have called them hos?) I can only imagine how the players and their parents felt when they heard his comments. I wouldn't like it if my sister or child was called that name. Your friend who says they should have been called 'd*kes' should maybe have some consciousness raising of his own-- he seems to buy into the tired old myth that female athletes must all be lesbians!
3 people like this
@soccermom (3198)
• United States
11 Apr 07
There were white women on the team too, so maybe he should be getting in trouble for being sexist, not racist. Imus has also referred to Middle Easterners as "r**heads"(which you can't even use on MyLot) and has been hating everybody for decades. Why is this all of a sudden a big deal now?
1 person likes this
• United States
11 Apr 07
I watched a part of that show, once, and that was it, as I felt they were just very mean spirited. The thing to me is it's on MSNBC, a mainstream news channel. What the heck for? And yes, it was a sexist, even more than a racist, sort of statement to be sure. But of course there's lots of this.. and not just against women or black folks..
2 people like this
@bobmnu (8157)
• United States
11 Apr 07
It was mentioned today the comment that got the gris upset was the "Nappy haired". Remember other people who have been punished for being racist. -President Bush for saying that Senator Obama was articulate. -Jimmy the Greek was let go for being asked why there were more Blacks in Footballand Basketball. He said that the Blacks that were brought here were the strongest ones and that when slave owners matched a man and woman up it was done to produce strong ofspring. He also said, in refrence to basketball players, that there were more blacks because the tall ones could see above the tall grass and avoid being eaten by Lions. -Senator Allen and his macra comment -But there are others who have made racial comments and nothning happens. Jessi Jackson made a comment about Hynee Town. Al Sharpton has made comments about consertive black as being Oreos - Black on the outside but White inside. Lt Governor of Maryland was heckeled by people and had oreo cookies thrown at him with no outrage by the media. Publish in Psychology Today an article states that Gay people hase better relationship that do "breeders" (hederosexual People). Don't forget the Arab leaders refering to Sect. State Rice as a monkey, but no outrage by the media. Rosie Odonnall calls andy one who objects to any aspect of homosexuallity as a homophobic, no outrage from the media. This seems to indicate that racist comments only when someone can make political headlines by protesting the comments. Or is it racist when an ethnic leader needs to prove to a minority that they are oppressed and he matains his power by making sure the people beleive they are oppressed?
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
11 Apr 07
But not a word when former Prs. Clinton showed up at a party in "Black Face" a couple of years ago. right? Before you know it, the descendants of slave owners will be forced to make ammends to Black Americans everywhere... in the name of "fairness".
• United States
12 Apr 07
In response to your discussion, the lyrics mentioned are okay because they were sung by a black man. If a white man had sung those lyrics, the world would be outraged. It all boils down to this: black people can say anything they want to other black people; but if a white person says the same thing to a black person, he is automatically considered racist. Imus didn't "insult black people" since he was refering to all of the team and the entire team wasn't black. The only reason the press is making a big deal about it is because people like Jesse Jackson and Al Sharpton can't let go of the race card. For some reason, that is all they think about. They automatically think that every comment people make is a racist remark; get a life. Don't you think that things like all black colleges are racist? Do white people have all white colleges? I don't think so.
1 person likes this
@ParaTed2k (22940)
• Sheboygan, Wisconsin
12 Apr 07
Exactly, it is just as racist to say "only Black people can do this" as it is to say "Black people can't do this".