Legendary, but loquacious, MC KRS-One has released a lengthy statement to clarify his recent statement defending Afrika Bambaataa amidst the child sex abuse allegations surfacing against him.
KRS-One raised some eyebrows when he said “I don’t really give a f*ck” about number of men who have come forward accusing Afrika Bambaataa of molesting them as teenagers. In an interview on the Drink Champs podcast, KRS said:
“For me, if you keep it Hip-Hop, nothing can be taken away from Afrika Bambaataa. But if you want to dig into dude’s personal life and accusations that’s being made and so on, personally, I don’t give a f–k.”
Since then, media outlets have taken KRS words and made headlines out of them. Many of them used variations of,“KRS-One Doesn’t Care If Afrika Bambaataa Molested Kids.”
KRS has taken offense to headlines, accusing the media of twisting his words around. To clarify his words, he issued a statement via his blog.
He says:
Of course, I care if a young person is being abused or even neglected, my entire life is based upon the protection and further development of young people; I teach and inspire young people every day! But, as you can see, irresponsible headlines like “KRS-One Doesn’t Care If Afrika Bambaataa Molested Kids”, and trying to turn a funny song I did years ago into some kind of question regarding my character is precisely the type of sensationalist gossip which I really don’t give a f–k about! Let us have Focus And Ignore These Haters. I said then as I am saying right now, it is not that I don’t care at all about the accusations made against Afrika Bambaataa; I am saddened at the whole controversy and how it is being handled. It is not that I don’t care, it is more the fact that I don’t gossip, I don’t take sides in real disputes that don’t concern me, I don’t slander people’s names and I don’t believe in abandoning your friends when they may be accused of crimes or make mistakes in life. What is so confusing about that?
He continues:
My position is clear! At this moment, all I am seeing and hearing regarding Afrika Bambaataa is gossip and sensationalism, and like I have already said, “I really don’t give a fuck about all that!” I don’t apply my mind to gossip and slander. Slandering the accused for the sake of slander is not justice, nor is it the seeking of justice. I would like to see justice and healing for both the accusers as well as for the accused. But continuous slander and disrespect are not healing anyone or even correcting the situation. Disrespect and slander is NEVER an indicator that true justice is being sought. Disrespect and outright slander proves personal vendettas and revenge against the slandered, and I don’t participate in such immaturity, nor am I naïve to political set-ups and character assassinations.
While KRS-One is attempting to clarify his words, this lengthy statement seems to make him sound even more insensitive. The next time he is asked about Bambaataa‘s situation, perhaps he should do as one of his song titles suggests and “Hush.”
Photo: WENN.com
