(2002-09-24) — Jesse Jackson says he’s not sure that freedom of speech is technically a “civil right”.
The remark comes after Jackson put pressure on the producers of the hit film “Barbershop” to remove jokes about Martin Luther King Jr., Rosa Parks and Jackson himself, from future releases of the movie.
“I know free speech is in the constitution, but if you recall, that was drawn up by a bunch of old white men,” said Jackson, in a reference to his recent speech at Michigan State. “In the ’60s, we were fighting for the right to vote, not the right to make jokes about Martin, and Mrs. Parks and other great leaders of the black community…like me.”
Privately, Jackson admitted that the jokes about Dr. King’s alleged promiscuity were offensive because they made no mention of Jackson’s own admitted promiscuity. Aides quote Jackson as saying, “Martin’s been dead for 34 years, and he still gets all the lines.”
Jackson also called for Al Gore to stop making jokes about Senator Strom Thurmond’s advanced age.

Post This to Your Facebook