I'm not terribly interested in Cosby, but I think your essay misses the mark on a number of counts. First, the above, he wasn't found innocent. The American legal system, save in rare instances of exoneration makes no such finding. A defendant might be found not guitly—i.e. the prosecution failed to make its case. But that is not factual innocence. As I understand the issue Cos's conviction was set aside because of 4th & 5th amendment violations. Okay. He was set free. As it should be. But I seriously doubt that many allegations are all false or exaggerated.
Then there's the issue of lynching as metaphor. That seems offensive to the memory of those who really were lynched. It harkens back to Clarence Thomas playing the race card in the Senate in light of Anita Hill's damaging allegations. He accused the committee of engaging in a "high tech lynching of an uppity black". Ponder that for a moment: "uppity"? Thomas? He was, & he knew he was, a credit to his race as far as Strom Thurmond & the other good old boys there were concerned. He denounced welfare, even throwing his own sister under the bus to do so. He criticized affirmative action, though it provided him with a career & rode to prominence.
How is the suggestion that you might not be an ideal choice for one of the securest, most powerful positions in the US equal to a "lynching"?
I don't think Showtime is putting Cos's life in danger by this.
Finally, you seem to be suggesting that because his critics aren't in a positions to promote the sort of philanthropy Cos clearly has they have no right to critique other aspects of his life. Does that mean only the very wealthy are allowed to criticize one another?
By comparison, is Nan Goldin, a photographer & recovering opioid addict, wrong to lead protests against the Sackler family, who own Purdue Pharma, which produces oxycontin, because they have also endowed millions to museums across the country?
The Koch Brothers are almost single-handedly responsible for making climate-warming denial commonplace in the US, while endowing too many hospitals & clinics to count.
Jeffrey Epstein donated $17 million to MIT before imploding.
When I see the title "We Need to Talk About Bill Cosby" I already know it'll be composed mostly of black people. There's a family/tribal implication in such a title. Similarly I'd expect something entitled "We Need to Talk About Harvey Weinstein" to feature few gentiles.
