Now that everybody’s had a chance to digest the Bill Cosby sentencing. We can have a real conversation as it relates to how boyz really feel and what actually makes sense. In case you’ve been under a rock for the past 48 hours everyone’s favorite TV dad was sentenced to 3 to 10 years in state prison after being found guilty of sexual assault in the drugging and molesting of Andrea Constand in his Philadelphia home in 2004. He was convicted of three counts of aggravated indecent assault.
When we actually saw Bill Cosby, wait a minute take that back, Heathcliff Huxtable in handcuffs it was a sad day for so many 40 to 50 year old black folks and especially black professionals in America. Bill Cosby had been their inspiration while in high school and college to become the middle class, upper middle class and wealthy folks that many of us have become today.
I can remember all of my friends piling up in my dorm room EVERY Thursday night while I was at Indiana University to watch the Cosby Show. We were all trying to figure out our futures while studying at the undergraduate level. We may not have known at the time what we wanted to become but we all knew that we wanted to live like the Cosby’s.
We’d never seen on camera the positive influences of black people living that good and being in control of their lives in real life. It was enough for us to study and focus a little harder every week. I grew up with college educated parents in a middle class home but it wasn’t anywhere near the level of the Cosby’s.
Then there was the spin off show “A Different World” which depicted life at a predominantly black college and university better known as an HBCU. That really had black kids all across America wanting to go to college to become successful.
Let’s keep it real or all the way 100, whichever comes 1st! Bill Cosby’s influence on black America has been immense. However, the reality of his indiscretions can’t be over looked.
Minutes after Bill was led away in handcuffs his defense attorney screamed racism in a statement. Sure, we all know that racism exists in the criminal justice system. However, the racism wasn’t in the conviction and sentencing of Bill Cosby. The racism was in the lack of prosecution of his celebrity white counterparts accused of many of the same indecent foolishness he was involved in. The list is too long to mention them by name but you get my point.
Bill was definitely into some foolishness. More than 60 women have come forward with the same type of allegations about Dr. Huxtable. In my Big Momma voice, “Baby…everybody ain’t lyin’ on you.”
Even though Mr. Cosby changed so many lives for the better. He apparently affected at least 60 lives negatively with his foolishness. Rape is rape regardless of who does it and with whatever type of bank account they may have.
Don’t scream racism because Bill went to jail. Scream racism because the others didn’t or haven’t. Wrong is wrong bruh!!
How many times have black folks heard the spill from their parents and Big Momma’s that “You’ve got to be 400 percent better than your white counterparts in order to be considered equal?” Or most importantly “You can’t do what everybody else does because their gonna jam you up first!” Don’t act like the old timers never sat you down and told you that.
Bill Cosby knew that he was black when he decided to start pulling those stunts 50 years ago but he did it anyway. Sure, we’re all sad today that the man that gave us so much inspiration to become even more than we set out to become is sitting in jail today as a convicted felon but he chose to be there. Why? Because he got the same lecture we all got when he was a young man and he’s been giving that same lecture to us for decades. He just didn’t follow the rules. Stop me when I start lyin’!