Civil Rights Attorney Leo Terrell and American University professor Dr. Omekongo Dibinga got into a controversial discussion on Hannity Tuesday night over the “canceling” of six Dr. Seuss books after it was announced the books would no longer be published.
Host Sean Hannity began the discussion by asking why Dr. Dibinga supported the “canceling” of the books that have been found to contain racist imagery.
Dibinga, who supports the decision to place these books in a permanent out-of-print status said, “I specifically object to images that depict Asians in a horrible light, that depict African people … in a horrible light, and this is something that Dr. Seuss has had a history of doing.”
According to the Associated Press, critics report books such as And to Think That I Saw It on Mulberry Street, stereotypes Asians and If I Ran the Zoo depicts African persons as savages.
“[The characters are] made to look like they’re exotic, where they’re made to look like they are less than civilized; and that is also the case with the African characters that appear in the books,” Professor Dibinga continued.
When Terrell responded, things got intense between the two men.
“This professor would not tell us who’s been harmed by these books,” Terrell said. “You name me one person, first and last name, who has been harmed by these books. You cannot do it. You talk about racism. Tell me where this racism exists.”
Terrell said that “historical books,” such as those included in this lot should not be banned. As a reminder, the books are not being banned, the estate of Dr. Seuss has decided the books will no longer be available for publication. Existing copies of the books are still available.
Terrell asked Dibinga to name “specific people” harmed by the books to which the latter responded, “Sure. I can name the black community that has been harmed by this book.”
It was at this point Terrell erupted in anger yelling, “Do not say that! You do not represent the black community! You know you’re wrong! You’re absolutely wrong! … You don’t represent me! For you to sit here and say that is a lie! … You don’t speak for the black community! You don’t speak for the black community!”
Hannity interjected by saying Barack and Michelle Obama promoted these books, a statement that must be fact checked due to Hannity’s inability to tell the truth.
The discussion ended in chaos, which seemed to be Hannity’s point all along, not a thoughtful discussion, but airing a rift within the Black community for the enjoyment of Fox News’ majority white audience.
