stephanie
04-13-2007, 09:05 PM
:poke:
NEW YORK, April 13, 2007 (UPI) -- Don Imus' racial slur against the Rutgers University women's basketball team differs from hip-hop, the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network in New York said.
Chairman Russell Simmons and President Dr. Benjamin Chavis of the non-profit organization said in a statement Friday they wanted address "false comparisons" between Imus and hip-hop. Imus called the women's team "nappy-headed hos" in a broadcast last week. Since then, Imus has apologized and met with team members and "Imus in the Morning," was canceled by CBS and MSNBC-TV, which simulcast the broadcast.
"HSAN believes in freedom of artistic expression. We also believe, with that freedom, comes responsibility. Don Imus is not a hip-hop artist or a poet," the two said in the statement.
Hip-hop artists sing about the world around them and sometimes use language that may be uncomfortable for the listener. Because language is powerful, Simmons and Chavis said the intention must be clear.
"Comparing Don Imus' language with hip-hop artists' poetic expression is misguided and inaccurate and feeds into a mindset that can be a catalyst for unwarranted, rampant censorship," they said.
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2007/04/13/imus_hiphop_different_nonprofit_says/
NEW YORK, April 13, 2007 (UPI) -- Don Imus' racial slur against the Rutgers University women's basketball team differs from hip-hop, the Hip-Hop Summit Action Network in New York said.
Chairman Russell Simmons and President Dr. Benjamin Chavis of the non-profit organization said in a statement Friday they wanted address "false comparisons" between Imus and hip-hop. Imus called the women's team "nappy-headed hos" in a broadcast last week. Since then, Imus has apologized and met with team members and "Imus in the Morning," was canceled by CBS and MSNBC-TV, which simulcast the broadcast.
"HSAN believes in freedom of artistic expression. We also believe, with that freedom, comes responsibility. Don Imus is not a hip-hop artist or a poet," the two said in the statement.
Hip-hop artists sing about the world around them and sometimes use language that may be uncomfortable for the listener. Because language is powerful, Simmons and Chavis said the intention must be clear.
"Comparing Don Imus' language with hip-hop artists' poetic expression is misguided and inaccurate and feeds into a mindset that can be a catalyst for unwarranted, rampant censorship," they said.
http://www.upi.com/NewsTrack/Entertainment/2007/04/13/imus_hiphop_different_nonprofit_says/