UPDATED: Phil Griffin Monday Part Deaux: Celebrate MSNBC's Silence with NOISE!

Ask for MSNBC President Phil Griffin at 212-664-4444(Be Polite if Possible!)

Hola! Greetings from the South By Southwest Interactive Festival. I'm still recovering from staying out past my bedtime, but that didn't stop me from waking up BRIGHT AND EARLY this morning to remind you that today is Monday and we still haven't heard from MSNBC Phil Griffin - Despite private assurances that MSNBC has PRIVATELY addressed the matter of MSNBC contributor Toure making light of Black women being systematically raped and tortured in an act of petulance on Twitter, MSNBC still hasn't made a single PUBLIC statement. Nor has MSNBC written emails or returned any of the telephone calls that were promised to many of you.

Read The Mysterious Case of Touré Praising Raped Slaves for Seducing 'Massa' - Gawker.com

Therefore, we are having our second weekly celebration of MSNBC President, Phil Griffin. HAPPY PHIL GRIFFIN DAY! You can wish him well at MSNBC President Phil Griffin at 212-664-4444. and ask him when he's going to be issuing a public statement about his contributor chortling about Black women being systematically raped during slavery.

Why a public statement? Because when another MSNBC David Shuster made comments far less inflammatory, racist, sexist, and cruel, MSNBC didn't hesitate to issue a quick brief PUBLIC statement saying that Shuster's comments were inappropriate.

“The comments were inappropriate,” an MSNBC spokesperson told Politico. “We have talked to David about them.” Mediaite.

So one can only assume that if the President of MSNBC has met with Toure, knows about his comments online and is remaining silent, then they must believe that making light of the devastating impact of sexual violence against Black women during slavery is "appropriate."


That's unacceptable. Nor should MSNBC find it acceptable for one of its contributors to make such misogynistic statements in a public forum and then LIE about making them, by blaming the statements on his "cousin" using his Blackberry while he was at yoga.

Then later confessing to lying about his cousin making the statements and then DELETING the confession from his tweetstream. So even if Phil Griffin thought the whole "making light of women being raped" thing was "appropriate", he should still be concerned he has a MSNBC contributor who is a bold face liar.

BUCK UP PEOPLE!
Now some of you may be too tired to make a 120 second phone call to ask MSNBC President Phil Griffin what he plans to do about this. I know. I know. Life is so hard for you these days. I mean making a 120 second phone call using free or prepaid cellphone minutes while you stand in line at Starbucks is FAR FAR worse than having to walk to work everyday for over 380 days in the hot blazing sun of Montgomery, Alabama. Making a 120 second phone call on your lunch break is SO MUCH WORSE than getting carted off to jail for sitting down on a bus or at a lunch counter. I mean Harriet Tubman had is so much easier back in the day, having to use drinking gourds and quilts, and negro spirituals to communicate escape plans to runaway slaves, Harriet Tubman surely can't know the burdens you have to endure to make a 120 second cellphone call.

Seriously people, its been two whopping weeks. You can start to whine about holding Phil Griffin and MSNBC accountable when we reach the 52nd Celebration of Phil Griffin Day a year from now. Gina, are you really going to post about this every Monday for a year? Well, um yes. I will if necessary. We made a really simple demand, give us the same statement about Toure, that you issued in the David Shuster Twitter debacle. The only reason I can think of to explain why Mr. Griffin refuses to issue such a statement is because David Shuster's Twitter target was a young White male and Toure's targets were Black women. That is an unacceptable double standard. It is a double standard that will continue to exist unless someone destroys that double standard. That someone would be YOU and ME.

Cybercrusading 101

Let me also take this time to give you an important tip about registering your complaint with a large corporate entity- Never. Ever. under ANY circumstances be RUDE or unkind to the people answering the phone. Always treat support staff well and with kindness and it will serve you well. A) They take crap all day long answering the phone. B) They probably agree with you. C) The person answering to the phone may become your advocate as opposed to your obstacle. D) I've answered my fair share of phones in my lifetime. E) the person answering the phone is not Phil Griffin and is likely powerless to make the man do anything he doesn't want to do. F) when you abuse support staff, you lose moral high ground- you have the moral high ground on this one. So do be kind when you call MSNBC President Phil Griffin at 212-664-4444 to wish him ( or his assistant a very Happy Phil Griffin Day!)

HAPPY PHIL GRIFFIN DAY Part Deaux! Just call and get it over with this morning!

PS to those who say this is futile and no one will ever listen to a bunch of outraged blog readers, did you check out my pithy quote in the Washington Post this weekend about Debra Lee's "Redemption Tour"? We can do this! This is low hanging fruit. Having a blast at SXSW BTW!

PREVIOUS POST

Celebrate Phil Griffin Day! – Award for Excellence in Corporate Dithering on HATE SPEECH

UPDATE: I have received a "statement" from MSNBC. I will be posting it, but after some of you read it, it may make some of you angrier and those who weren't angry, mildly annoyed.  I attempted to get the MSNBC spokeswoman to "fix" the statement, but she insisted on having me publish her culturally insensitive original statement .  But they really do want y'all to stop calling them :)  One small problem, her statement will likely only infuriate you more because its about as elitist as they come, drenched in complete and total lack of self awareness. As a preview, apparently both Mr. Griffin AND Ms. Russo, the NBC spokeswoman are the descendants of African slaves... who knew. Just wait for it.

Comments

[Sistrunkqueen]

It may be more effective to send a note to the board of directors.

[Tracy]

Do both!!

[vinindy @yahoo.com]

left live msg with "assistant." sd something they are working on internally. left real name (first and last) and phone number Again.

[truth p]

will do. this is my new theme song.i think others may like it too.it's very motivational
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9YWQ3hRy85w&feature=related

[LaTonya]

I didn't see this in time to do it Monday, but I will tomorrow. And yes, I did see your quote in the WaPo and forwarded to several of my girlfriends :-).

Very well said, and very much appreciated.

[gem2001]

YAY My Sisters! Keep on keeping on. Harriet Tubman would be proud. Onward and upward.

Thank you Latonya!

[Tori]

I'm failing to see where he makes light of sexual violence. He specifically differentiates between those who were raped and those who willingly partook in dalliances with slave masters in order to improve their circumstances. He was defending them against the assertion that they were "hos". He was arguing that they did what they had to do to improve conditions for themselves.
The "Image Award" question was asked by Jaonyourmind.

[BLKSeaGoat]

Is anyone interested in doing a Phil Griffin "phone" bank next Monday?

I'll post the same on the WAOD network tonight. I was thinking 4 people per business hour. That way, one person could make a call every fifteen minutes for the entire business day next Monday.

[revmamaafrika.com]

Sis. Gina, I now see what you mean by voice mail hell.

I just called, spoke to some young woman, an assistant I guess. She said Mr. Griffin and the managing editor have spoken to Toure, and that the matter is being handled internally. I then asked, "will Mr. Griffin make a public comment the way he has done for previous similar situations?" The woman repeated, the matter is being handled internally, and she's not sure about a public statement. She then asked me would I like to leave a message on some sort of special voice mail. I said, yes, but I asked does Mr.Griffin listen to it himself. She replied, "the messages are passed on to him." Which I guess is cryptic for "no". Then she passed me on to the voice mail which never picked up, I let it ring for 15 times! I then hung up and called again. This time I got the voice mail of the assistant in Mr. Griffin's office that I spoke to the first time.

Ok, do any of you know a famous, nationally known sister who could call Mr. Griffin's office? Dorothy Haight? Maya Angelou? Alice Walker? Angela Davis? bell hooks? Byllye Avery? Do you think that would work, get a response?

Also, I just read the WP article. Debra Lee ain't serious! We have lots of grassroots women's organizations, domestic violence/sexual assault organizations, really great, progressive women's organizations in some of our churches, Men Can Stop Rape, Inc., youth groups, all-girls organizations, etc., that Debra Lee could have invited. Why didn't she? Is she scared of the masses? The BET complex is located in a low-income neighborhood in northeast WDC. Why didn't she just look around, ask around in her company's neighborhood? Yep, just like you said, a PR stunt with no substance. And Valerie Jarrett there to plug Pres. Obama's health care/insurance plan? Is she serious? There is no public option and Pres. Obama AND his minions deliberately would not allow public option/Medicare For All advocates to attend his most recent big-tent meeting. Do they realize what a public option means for young girls, especially in a city like Washington, DC? Geez!! :( :(

[Faith Dow]

Whew..in between rabble-rousing assignments... I just called and was shiftly processed to the voicemail from hell but wait for it...I called back! I got a different person who patched me through to Phil's Office (by mistake I guess). I got his flustered assistant who claimed Phil was in a meeting but assured me "Toure is not an MSNBC employee and his statements by no means represent MSNBC" and that "Phil talked to him". Also Gina they claim to have to sent you a statement but they aren't prepared to make a more "public statement" at this time. Whatever that means! I said as a viewer I expect a direct call back from Phil about this lack of professionalism and slander. We'll see.

[gem2001]

HELLO ALL. We did get a "statement from them." Will post later. But yes, y'all are getting on their LAST NERVES calling them.

[gem2001]

THEN WHY IS MSNBC's name on Toure's Twitter account?