Rebb'n Al vs Freaky Zeke

Still gassed off his "victory" over Don Imus earlier this year, it seems like Rebb'n Al has been taking on any and all comers of late. Jena, Louisiana. The NYPD. Bill O'Reilly (pre-Sylvia's). Even Elliott Spitzer. So, it's not much of a surprise to see him weigh in on the whole Isaiah Thomas/Anucha Browne Sanders debacle, albeit a month late. As go the cameras, go goes the Reverend.

Four days after Knicks Coach Isiah Thomas was held liable for sexual harassment, the Rev. Al Sharpton said yesterday that Thomas must apologize if he felt there was a different standard between black and white men in using a derogatory term toward black women.

In a video of Thomas’s deposition, he was seen saying it was less offensive for a black man to call a black woman a "bitch" than it was for a white man.

Sharpton said Thomas told him by telephone yesterday that crucial context had been omitted when part of his deposition was seen in court.

Sharpton said that if the tape was not incorrectly spliced, Thomas had to apologize. If Thomas does not, Sharpton said that his organization, the National Action Network, would picket Knicks games.

While I'm glad to see somebody step up to the plate and call out Isaiah Thomas on this BS, Sharpton strikes me as maybe not the right guy to talk about workplace affairs. Lets not forget that Rebb'n Al himself quietly dumped his wife of 20+ years during that ill-fated 2004 Presidential campaign for a subordinate colleague, the then executive director of the National Action Network.

Again, somebody needs to say something, but maybe the good Reverend just isn't the one.

The paradox of Al Sharpton (and Jesse too) is a dual edged sword. It's like discovering a $100 in the urinal of a public restroom. Sure, you'll feel good about spending it, but your hands will stink like hell long afterward. Such is the case with Sharpton.

The good: he's the media's "go to guy". He's a soundbyte machine who can pull in the mainstream press at will and suddenly deem a story newsworthy.

The bad: he's the media's "go to guy". For better or worse, White America assumes he's a mouthpiece for us all, which he obviously isn't.

Two sides. Same coin. Same result. We stay losing.

Sharpton Seeks an Apology Over Thomas’s Language [NYTimes]