After the cable network, A&E indefinitely suspended production of their hit reality series Dog the Bounty Hunter, the brunt of its impact has been hitting the airwaves. Sean Hannity of Hannity & Colmes fame have tried to rehabilitate the Dog’s image by likening his comments to the “equivalent of him cursing.” Whereas, others are calling for his immediate dismissal and for his show to be taken off the air, BET’s Jeff Johnson has a difference in opinion with the masses.
In an emailed statement, Johnson states that although he believes that the word should not be used as a term of endearment, with all of the racist rants going on, he’s appalled at Black people. An excerpt below:
“Duane “Dog” Chapman goes on a rant on a voice message about N-word this and n-word that, voicing his obvious disgust at the thought of a family member dating an N-word. He further concludes by stating that he would advise that family member to refrain from dating this person, as he did not wish to risk his career by using the N-word on TV. I am more appalled by this tirade than by the racist rants of [Don] Imus, Michael Richards, and Mel Gibson (while not about black people) combined; but I am appalled at black people.”
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Johnson further comments by saying that although “Dog” is a racist that his conversation, a private phone call, was taped without his knowledge and submitted to the press. With two wrongs not making a right, Johnson completely disagrees with the sentiments of Duane Chapman, but concedes that it becomes dangerous when the media, the public and Black America begins to demonize people for private conversations. An excerpt below:
“I appreciate Duane’s self-awareness in saying (in so many words), “I am a racist, so stay away from me”. I have more respect for an honest racist who admits their feelings, than a lying two-face that talks about tolerance and acceptance (even privately), yet can’t stand anyone different than himself or herself. Black leadership needs to focus its attention on the legitimate, systemic institutional racism that continues to plague this nation from top to bottom. But that is a harder fight than targeting a lone bigot, not worth the energy. Legitimate leadership should begin to recognize that.”
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HipHopDX will stay tune as more of this unfolds.
