Showtime’s four-part “We Need to Talk About Cosby” is worth checking out. Writer-director Kamau Bell chronicles the unmasking and devolution of an erstwhile icon to that of societal menace. The overriding takeaway: “America’s dad” was an unconscionable, unrelenting predator. His victims and show biz enablers didn’t want to acknowledge and confront a Dr. Huxtable & Mr. Hyde monster in their midst. One of our seemingly better angels was preying on vulnerable women.
But it was more than a disgusting revelation.
It was a gut punch to a society that thought it had a high-profile black entertainer who was what racially riven America desperately needed: Someone who could, without trafficking in “adult” humor and F-bombs, remind us all of what we had in common—not conflict. Every neighborhood had a Fat Albert. Regardless of race or religion, we could see the humor in our literal retelling of God’s ark-building instructions to Noah. In a society polarized by race, Cosby was a godsend. Until he wasn’t. His betrayal was a demonic nightmare.
Yes, it was. A huge let down.
When Cosby made his famous “pound cake speech” or as some sarcastically labeled it, “The Ghettosburg Address,” I was one of his biggest cheerleaders. I even wrote columns echoing his points about black America’s need to engage in serious self-criticism. This documentary was both a stab in the back and gut. Still, I’m still waiting for someone else to go around the country like he did making “call outs” demanding we look in the mirror and correct some of the ugliness going on.