Today I’m lamenting the death of three prophetic voices from our American discourse. Kanye, Cosby and Cone are all black men who have had something to say about society and the conditions of those living in the black community. These men were strong and proud. They demonstrated on several occasions their affection for my people. And when necessary they used their voices to sound the prophetic witness of our greatness.
Bill Cosby was the father figure we watched religiously on Thursday nights. He had an ability to blend humor, intellect and responsibility in a way that inspired excellence. Unfortunately, his arrogance and erudition espoused a milieu that led him down a road of public discourse that ultimately distanced him from the people who loved him most. Of all places, it was at an NAACP event in 2004 that Cosby chose to deride and demean his own culture. He literally badgered the ontological existence of oppressed people for their current state of being. He talked about the way they lived, loved, talked and walked. He spoke as if, all poor blacks had a choice. Who would choose to be poor? But, he chilled on the rhetoric and kept giving money to our interest, so we gave him a pass. Afterwards came the accusations of indiscretions and rape. Then there were more and more accusations.
Kanye West has found himself on a similar path as Cosby. We all remember the night Kanye chose to speak his truth during a nationally televised telethon to raise money for victims of Hurricane Katrina. His bold and unfiltered critique connected almost instantly to the souls of black folk. His comments combined with the creativity and power of his music assured his place in African American culture. Then came the strange public appearances and the marriage. But we continued to give him the benefit of the doubt. That is until his most recent public statement saying, that slavery was a choice. It was as if the two were in a relay race and Cosby literally handed the baton to Kanye so that he might finish what he started to say, almost fourteen years ago.
Cone, a less known public figure, except for in theological communities, was growing in stature with each passing year. Since his development of what is known as black liberation theology in the late 60’s, Cone was a leader among African American intellectuals and theologians of every race. His work relieved many a black seminarian from the weight of serving a religion that was said to be given by white folk to pacify blacks who were enslaved. He literally made the case for Jesus’ ethnicity and placed Him squarely among the oppressed people of the world. Most of the world would not know who he was, until they were introduced to the former pastor of then Presidential candidate Barack Obama, Jeremiah Wright. Wright in response to the ignorant laced bias towards his preaching exposed the world to the founder of this theology that placed African Americans between The Cross and the Lynching Tree, also the title of a book written by Cone.
All three of these men met different definitions of what it meant to be prophetic. To speak prophetically, in my opinion, is often immediate and risky. Speaking truth to power or offering an opinion about popular culture and its infraction on the conscious of society comes at a cost. If that is the case, then what is the modern-day faith leader willing to risk…it’s not easy to speak truth in a world that has grown comfortable with being misled?
Unlike Cosby or Kanye, Cone never once sought the lime light or the big payday. His commitment was to a work bigger than his own life. He unselfishly dedicated his life to truth telling, no matter the cost. He risked it all to walk in his truth. Although both Cosby and Kanye are very much alive today, effectively they are dead to me, but Cone who, ironically was laid to rest last week, still lives. What I learned from each of these men is that the prophetic truth will outlive our egos, our bank accounts and our time on this earth, because “truth crushed to earth shall rise again.”
