Bill Cosby ignited a storm of controversy — well, at least the media is working hard to manufacture — a storm of controversy — by saying young black people should make an effort to speak standard English.
“They’re standing on the corner and they can’t speak English,” Cosby said. “I can’t even talk the way these people talk: ‘Why you ain’t,’ ‘Where you is’ … And I blamed the kid until I heard the mother talk. And then I heard the father talk. … Everybody knows it’s important to speak English except these knuckleheads. … You can’t be a doctor with that kind of crap coming out of your mouth!”
Decades ago, when I taught college English, the “Right to Language” movement began. Essentially, a group of ethnic scholars banded together to defend their perceived right to speak in foreign languages and non-standard dialects. Certain black dialects were defended as cultural icons and discussed as “encoded speech” designed to “make the black voice distinctive from that of an oppressive white society.”
Years later, though, the tide began to turn. The first dollar I earned as a consultant? Devising a series of computer-based programs for one of the nation’s largest temporary agencies. The goal? Teaching ethnic workers the importance of being able to speak standard English. (My three-word summary of the system’s message? “Talk like whitey.”)
Cosby’s comments (and that training program I created) address an uncomfortable, but important issue: in America, success often depends on one’s ability to communicate and interact with the largest possible number of people. While there are social and communal benefits associated with speaking an ethnic dialect, one must ultimately decide whether these outweight the potential benefits offered by also learning to speak Standard.
In the end, people should have a right to their own language — but they should also be aware of the implications of that choice, and the pros and cons of choosing one language over another.
PS: Cosby also criticized black parents for spending $500.00 on sneakers while refusing to pay $200 for Hooked on Phonics, and the black community for positioning shoplifters (people who “steal Coca Cola … and pound cake”) as political prisoners of The Man.
It’s worthwhile to wonder why so many media outlets this morning — Good Morning America among them — have chosen to focus on the language-related remarks while completely ignoring Cosby’s comments on crime.
Some controversial statements, I suppose, are so controversial, not even the media is willing to generate controversy over them.
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