Last year, at the "Measuring the Movement" forum, hosted by Rev. Al Sharpton and the National Action Network, I had a chance to sit next to Chuck D. from Public Enemy. I found Chuck to be as impressive, interesting and intelligent as he is on television. He also didn't give off the mind-numbing, stomach-turning, arrogant celebrity vibe that I see all too much. I was thoroughly impressed.

While I feel that I have some understanding of Chuck D., I simply cannot say the same for Flavor Flav. Flav almost seems to come out of a different time, place, and perhaps even another planet from the rest of us. He would have been great in the 1920s, when black performers could make a fortune by embracing ignorant stereotypes and engaging in ridiculous behavior. Flav seems to relish his role as the cultural clown, reminding all of us of exactly what Dr. Martin Luther King did not want our children to become.


Well, it was no surprise to the world when Flavor Flav continued his tradition of "interesting" behavior by announcing that he was planning to open up a chain of fried chicken and rib joints across America. The first location has opened, in Iowa of all places, just this week. He is also planning to offer (surprise!) La Flav's Spirits, a chain of flavored liquor. There's no better way to feed a black stereotype than to serve it both fried chicken and liquor.

To some extent, Flavor Flav is actually a victim. In a world where political correctness is valued and appreciated by most of us and America is trying to heal from a racist past, it has become almost illegal for men like Flavor Flav to express themselves the same way the white guys do. There are idiots on the MTV show "Jackass" who do ridiculous things, but they arent' accused of undermining their entire race in the process. Flavor Flav is often criticized for doing his own thing.

But while most of us can understand that Flavor Flav is not the first guy to make a fool out of himself on TV, we must also realize that whites have the luxury of having a diversity of images presented in mainstream media. On one channel, you might see Jack Black doing something ridiculous, but on the next channel, one can see Wolf Blitzer doing something intelligent. It's not that being silly is wrong, it's that the media tends to shine the spotlight on the black guy who's embarrassing himself the most. CNN Financial's decision to highlight Flavor Flav instead of the thousands of other intelligent and capable black businessmen across America is a case-in-point, reminding us that society has created a role for black men as entertainers, athletes and criminals, which is a typecast from which we have yet to escape.

Overall, I hope Flavor Flav sells a lot of chicken (I love fried chicken, so yes, even I fulfill some stereotypes). I do not, however, want him to sell very much liquor (we've got enough of that in our community). I also hope that perhaps one day, rappers can realize that there are more productive ways to make money and contribute to our people than to give them more liquor, clothes and greasy food. The day of the liquor/chicken/clothing/drug selling rapper is just a little played out and it's time to move to the new millenneum.

Dr. Boyce Watkins is the founder of the Your Black World Coalition and a Scholarship in Action Resident of the Institute for Black Public Policy. To have Dr. Boyce commentary delivered to your email, please click here.