April 19, 2007

StreetTalk

by Carol Rosen

Last week disc jockey Don Imus was fired from his radio show on CBS and MSNBC after he made derogatory comments about the Rutger’s University women’s basketball team. Do you think he should have been fired? Why or why not? Do you think rappers should be held to the same standard?
(Asked the Almaden Plaza)

“No, because he did exactly what he’s been doing forever. I don’t agree with what he did, but it’s nothing new. I don’t like his style. Absolutely, rappers should be held to the same standard. We do it for one, we do it for all. As the mother of four, I would stand on the street corner to get that language out of my child’s generation, you bet.”

Sylvia Simoes, 47
Almaden
Homemaker


“He should have been fired. What he said was sexist. It took away from the team and destroyed their euphoria from winning. I think we should hold rappers to the same standard. I think the Rev. Al Sharpton should get after them; their language needs to be cleaned up.”

Jan Reed
Almaden
Retired


“Definitely, urgently, the pendulum can only swing so far—it’s time to go back. I worry about my grandchildren, how they will grow up. They need to change the values; these children are vulnerable to this music. Values are missing, and it has come from the media. We are surrounded by it.”

Bernie Dayal
Almaden
Retired


“I don’t think he was fired for just the statement about the basketball players; I think that the statement was the last straw. He’s offended people for many years, but he’s not the kind of person I listen to. Yes, I think it’s all offensive. My friends and I have discussed these videos and they are horrible. They are especially demeaning to women.”

Chris Obenberg
Almaden
Second grade teacher in San Jose


“Yes, he should have been fired. He’s a talk person and everyone listens to him. He is responsible to set a good example for the people that listen to him. Yes I do think rappers should be held to the same standards, but rapping is a different genre. What we see on TV is edited, but we don’t pay for radio. Imus can be censored, but not as much as they censor the videos on TV."

Paul Herrera, 21
Almaden
Student at Foothill College and works at Blockbuster


“No, he should not have been fired because we have freedom of speech. I think rappers should be held to a higher standard because some of the things they say are unbelievable. Our standards for what is acceptable have gone down. In other countries, they seem to have a lot more respect, but they also are more censored. I think the people who produce the music should uphold standards instead of just considering the money.”

Naomi Young, 47
Almaden
Real Estate Manager


"No, he should not have been fired because he’s been doing this type of thing for a long time. He should have been suspended for a while—a month—instead, and warned that it offended people and he would be fired the next time he said such things. I think rappers should be allowed to do what they want because they are artists; they should have their own freedom.”

Alli Leung, 16
Almaden
Junior at Leland High School


"No, he shouldn’t have been fired. I like rapper lyrics. I don’t think the lyrics are demeaning to women. I listen to it, but I like rock music better."

Kayla Hall, 16
Almaden
Sophomore at Leland High