Since the story broke back in November of
2014, I have remained silent on this topic on my blog -- that ends today. As we
are celebrating the birth of the new royal baby Princess Charlotte, the sex
scandal that is currently surrounding Bill Cosby has steadily grown from just
10 women to almost 40 women, all claiming to have been drugged and either raped
or molested by him. Now don’t get me wrong -- I think that rape is the most
violent and evil crime that can ever be committed against a woman, and I in no
way support a rapist walking free after he has destroyed the lives of his
victim(s).
However, when it comes to Bill Cosby’s case, the question
that keeps coming to the forefront is “Why now?” Why did these women, after in
some cases 20, 30 and even (in one case) 50 years, come forward with this shocking
claim of being raped by him? What kept
them in the closet for so long, and why do they feel that now is the right time
to go after a man they should have been after since the 1950s? Since the original story broke, some of these
women’s personal background stories have been dumped into the media, and
frankly, from what I have read about some of them, their accusations make them
seem like gold diggers. This would answer my initial question of “why now,” but
as more women keep coming out of the woodwork, one has to wonder if there is
some truth to what these women are saying. I would hate to think that there are
people out there that are so sick that they would stoop so low to accuse an
innocence man of a crime he didn’t commit just to get 15 minutes of fame.
Remember, Bill Cosby is not a poor man, and he also has a rich legacy that is
at stake here, which is the positive image of a black man and a black family in
America.
I hate to play the race card, but as a child I can
remember watching first the Cosby Show and then Cosby and saying, “Wow, I want
to be like them and grow up and have a family like that!” Keep in mind that
back in the 80s and early 90s, there weren’t that many positive role models or
positive images of either the black family, black men, or black women for that
matter. That all changed with the debut of The
Cosby Show. The Cosby Show was
ground-breaking, for unlike shows such as Good
Times or The Jeffersons, The Cosby Show showed that if a black
man and black woman got a college education, they could not only have a
successful career but also raise a respectful, educated, graceful, and career-driven
family, just like any other person -- white or black. However, with this sex
scandal now coming out, it makes us as a race wonder how many of our heroes
have skeletons in their closets. Does this mean that there is a group of women
who are waiting for the right time to accuse black heroes like Paul Robinson,
Ben Carson, Sydnee Poitier, or even President Obama of the crime of rape some
50 years after the fact? Let’s be reasonable here -- even if Bill Cosby was not
the man he is, the fact remains that there is no physical evidence, there are
no witnesses, and there is nothing other than the words of these women that can
corroborate their stories. Another problem with this is that the law has a
statute of limitations, which currently prevents them from charging Bill Cosby
with rape. This means that the only thing they can do to him legally is sue him
for defamation of character, and some of them are taking that route.
This leads me back to my original question -- why now? If
the only thing you can do to this guy is sue him for defamation of character,
and you can’t even put him behind bars for his crime, is it really worth
it? For what you will have lost is worth
more than a defamation of character lawsuit. I
mean these women lost their
lives, self–respect, sense of self-worth, and much more than I can list in this
article. I admit, I find it hard to belief that a man idolized as a positive
father figure for all young, black, fatherless girls could do this evil thing.
However, that does not mean I am heartless. If he did do this, then nail that
lying son of a gun to the wall and make an example out of him, which states that
even if you are outside of the legal statute of limitations, you can’t get away
with this -- not then, and definitely not now. But if he is innocent of this
crime, then the only words I have to say to the accusers are karma is always a
b…!
By Nadia Johnson
