Stringer says Thomas' comments in deposition 'disgusting'


Rutgers women's basketball coach C. Vivian Stringer didn't like it when Don Imus and his producer called her players rude and racially insensitive names after the NCAA Women's Final Four. She didn't like hearing Isiah Thomas defending the use of similar language, either.

He has no right to put her down, and then think it's ok for me to put her down but it's not alright for a white man to put her down. What are you talking about? She is a human being and as a female, and in particular as a black female, I took tremendous offense to that.

"It's disgusting. You know, I turned the dog-gone set off. I thought 'has he lost his mind,' honestly," Stringer told ESPN's Doris Burke of her reaction to comments Thomas made in a videotaped deposition for a sexual harassment lawsuit against him and the owners of the New York Knicks.

In the deposition, made public during the trial, Thomas suggested he would be more troubled hearing a white man calling a black woman a "bitch" than if a black man said the same thing.

Later, during the trial and in comments to reporters, Thomas said degrading a woman in such a manner "is never OK."

But Stringer had already heard enough.

"You want to know what I really felt? It was disgusting. What does he think?" Stringer said. "This was a woman first. He has no right to put her down, and then think it's ok for me to put her down but it's not alright for a white man to put her down. What are you talking about? She is a human being and as a female, and in particular as a black female, I took tremendous offense to that.

"It speaks to the issues. It again speaks to the real issues throughout our society. I say that it speaks to those real issues throughout our society, it speaks to the music and the videos and the whole thing."

Stringer found herself in the center of a national debate on race, sexism and civility when, a few days after the national championship game, Imus and his producer made racist and sexist remarks about the Rutgers women, with Imus calling the team "nappy-headed hos." They were later fired.

Stringer and her team, which accepted Imus' apology, have been looking to put the controversy behind them and get down to the business of basketball.

"I just wish people would say Rutgers, the national runner-up, and leave it at that," Stringer said at Big East media day Thursday.

A federal jury ruled Thomas and Madison Square Garden were liable for harassing former Knicks executive Anucha Browne Sanders and ordered MSG to pay her $11 million in damages. Both Thomas and MSG said they would appeal.

Isiah, Dolan and MSG can refuse to talk about it, but it's not over.

He said something very stupid and very disrespectful. Stringer obviously feels that african americans and african american women are forced to deal with biases based on their race and gender. For a high profile, respected man of the same race to say something like Isiah did has to be very disheartening for someone who is trying to overcome this.

Papabear Says

I made up in my mind not to get into this type of talk. Zeke underestimated the power of the media and this type of talk. The b---h word should have never been aloud in rap music. We as african Americans should bear the blame. As long as one of us use the B word it's ok. Well it's not OK. Zeke tried to be cute in that taped interview by the courts. Little did he know that this would haunt him. I don't think Ms Brown was an angel at msg. She did her dirt. Those tapes of Dolan and Zeke brought them down big time. Black on Black hate. Zeke and Ms Brown.
I can drive through any big urban city and see churches all over the place but we allowed all of this to go on. We have no one to blame but ourselves.
When I was growing up we had 3 styles of cloths 1 colligent,2 thug ,3 and regular. today for young men it's just one style, and thats the gangster style. Gangster rap culture took over the style of dressing and attitude and the thug mentality. The B word in the African community is no big deal. If it was a big deal we would have done something about it.
Zeke is only one of a million black men who unfortunatly think it's no big deal. As a matter of fact the young black ladies need to take some of the blame because they were out there dancing to the music and lyrics like it was no big deal. To Ms Stringer you should have been disgusted years ago. WE ARE ALL TO BLAME BY LOOKING THE OTHER WAY.

Papabear

[Edited by - Papabear on 10-26-2007 10:30 PM]

I really hope Sharpton doesn't believe Isiah's lame excuse and protests outside of the Garden before the home opener.

Would Sharpton really believe that Isiah's, Dolan's and MSG's lawyers or the judge for that matter, would allow a doctored tape to be offered as evidence by the plaintiff? ISIAH'S LAWYERS DIDN'T EVEN OBJECT IN COURT.

TrueBlue - I didn't know there was a daily attendance requirement.

Just a friendly reminder - I have a life. But since you asked, here's a follow-up memo:


Isiah Thomas had been in a morbid mood with the press the past week and portions of preseason. He had put up a wall because of the media's portrayal of the trial, the boos from the fans, the threats from Commissioner David Stern, the proposed boycott of the Rev. Al Sharpton, and the recent rip job by Rutgers women's coach C. Vivian Stringer, whom he spoke to yesterday and received an apology.

-NYPost