Cosby speaks at Read 2 Lead Classic

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San Jose Mercury News
Posted on Fri, Sep. 17, 2004


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Cosby defends earlier remarks

TELLS SJSU AUDIENCE BLACKS MUST TAKE OWN RESPONSIBILITY

By Aaron C. Davis

Mercury News

Bill Cosby says he should have chosen his words more carefully, but the message he's been heavily criticized for remains the same: African-Americans and all ``lower economic'' people must embrace education and take responsibility for their lives.

``Victims, get up if you can. Get your family together and stop blaming whatever,'' Cosby told a crowd estimated at 3,000 gathered Thursday night at San Jose State University.

In kicking off the school's three-day Read-2-Lead Classic that's designed to promote literacy, the 67-year-old comedian refined the controversial remarks he made in May -- mocking lower-income African-Americans for ``not holding up their end'' and for blaming failure on racial ``oppressors.''

In a word, Cosby said, his message now is: ``integrity.''

``We need a transformation, and we need your help,'' Cosby said in an hourlong, joke-filled dialogue with San Jose State football coach Fitz Hill.

``The great part of being literate,'' Cosby quipped, ``is you can see the mistakes of so many people.''

Hill and Cosby, who both hold doctoral degrees in education, said the weekend event, which is planned around the school's Saturday football game with Morgan State University, provided a rare opportunity to use the ``huge platform'' of college sports to promote education.

Sporting a navy blue SJSU sweatsuit, baseball cap and sunglasses, Cosby began the conversation by asking how many students in the audience planned to become schoolteachers. After a loud, whooping response, Cosby then steered the discussion toward a familiar refrain for the former actor:

Good parenting is the key to education, he said. The nation's public school system is no match for children from broken families that don't teach their children basic values.

In fact, audience members groaned at times as Cosby's grim description of inner-city life unfolded. Without education and good parenting, he said, children of lower income families are destined to a life of crime and abuse.

Parents need to give their children a ``vision'' for their lives, and teachers need to realize all the ``back stories'' that their students contend with each day, he said.

Rochelle Lakey, 28, who posed one of three questions Cosby answered, said while Cosby's comments may be perceived as politically incorrect, they are crucial to getting the nation's real social issues into the mainstream.

``This is not an easy message to bring to the masses,'' said Lakey, a software engineer who graduated from the University of California-San Diego in 1998. ``People think it's not really that bad and they don't understand why it's coming from Bill Cosby. It's just the way it is, people have to hear it."

Lakey's question got to the heart of Cosby's recent controversy. She asked what the comedian thought of the ``fallout'' from his May comments.

``He said he generalized too much, and I think his answer was right on,'' Lakey said. ``But I wish he could have talked more. There's never enough time for these conversations.''
Contact Aaron Davis at acdavis@mercurynews.com or (408) 275-0917.