As a child, I remember sitting around the TV with my family waiting to watch one of my favorite shows, The Cosby Show. Not only was it funny, but it was probably one of the last shows on television to represent how an individual – and family – acted when it practiced good values, morals and principles. Fast-forward a decade or so later and I was finally introduced to Bill Cosby’s stand-up act for the first time by a friend of mine. I laughed so hard at his dentist bit that I literally had to leave the room and go outside just to get some air.  It was one of the funniest things I had ever heard and I eventually had the privilege of seeing him perform his act live where he ended his routine with that same bit, capping off a great evening of comedy.

I have always had the utmost respect for Bill Cosby and still do for his stance on morals and personal responsibility. He is unfortunately criticized for standing up for these values even within his own black community. I applaud him for taking such stands on tough issues – well they’re tough issues according to society, but common sense for many of us. However, there seems to be one issue that we don’t seem to completely agree on: guns.

In case you’ve been living under a rock, the Trayvon Martin story has been a big part of the news in recent weeks and Cosby was asked to comment on it. On a side note, why is this just Trayvon Martin’s story? Why not also Zimmerman? I have thoughts on that but it’s beside the point. At any rate, in a CNN interview, Cosby gets half of the equation right when he acknowledges that race has nothing to do with what happened, but loses me when he says, “I believe that when you tell me that you’re going to protect the neighborhood that I live in, I don’t want you to have a gun.” For an individual whom I admire and respect, I’m disappointed that he couldn’t nail this one down and put it away like he does in capping off his stand-up routine.

Friends, Cosby is right that race is not an issue, but how many times are we going to blame an inanimate object for the killing of a human being? Cosby even admits to once owning a gun to protect his family and understood that there is a level of responsibility that comes with owning a firearm, but he doesn’t seem to understand – like many other anti-gun activists – that the gun, is no more responsible for the killing of a human being than the car that was driven by a drunk driver is responsible in the death of a family of four. Should we outlaw cars because they were involved in this and many other drunken murderous acts like it?

The focus of the Trayvon Martin shooting should be on the events and individuals of that night and processed through the justice system where the facts can be presented and the accused tried by a panel of his peers. We are not a vigilante justice society, nor should we ever be one and those who believe in such should be condemned for their statements.  I will stand up for my right to carry a firearm; I will defend myself if necessary; I will stand up against racism; I will fight for proper justice; and I will draw the line for what is right and what is wrong.

Are you with me or not?

pb:dy