 Russell Simmons wants to put his money where his mouth is.
The hip-hop mogul is reeling over the recent controversy over Lowe’s decision to pull ads from the TLC reality show “All American Muslim.”
Simmons tells CNN he’ll buy up any remaining ad time left after the home improvement store’s exit, but he also says this is about more than just money.
Simmons argues that this is an issue of First Amendment rights, and he wants the Lowe’s CEO to publicly apologize by Friday or face the consequences.
Simmons goes on to say he believes all of the country’s civil rights groups should join the Muslim community in fighting against what he calls bigotry. He says “All American Muslim” is a good depiction of Muslim families, and he disagrees with the argument that it’s inaccurate because it doesn’t include the more radical factions of the religion. Simmons says pulling ads from the program because it’s “not negative” enough shows how “Islamophobic” Lowe’s is, adding that it seems to indicate the company has “hateful intentions” toward the Muslim community.
Lowe’s reportedly pulled its ads from “All American Muslim” earlier this month after pressure from the Florida Family Association. The conservative group called the series “propaganda,” but Democratic Senator Ted Lieu offered his own response to the decision by calling it “bigoted, shameful and un-American.”
Lowe’s has since issued a statement standing by its choice and insisting the company has a “strong commitment to diversity and inclusion.”
Wow thats messed up just because they dont show them building bombs doesnt mean thats its bad tv. Lowes shouldnt pulled their ads, how American is that?
LOWES WAS WRONG BUT I THINK IT WOULD BE EXCESSIVE FOR THE CEO TO STEP DOWN.
TAKE THEY MUSLIM ASS BACK WERE THEY COME FROM AMERICA ALLOW TO MANY ETHICITY TO ENTER AMERICA THATS WHY WE ARE SUCH A EASY TARGET WE SHOLDNT BE THE LAND OF THE FREE … ESPECIALLY TO OUTSIDERS WHAT THE HELL GOING ON… AND RUSSEL SIT YOUR ASS DOWN WITH YOUR MUSLIM AS… THATS WHY THEY ALMOST HIT YOUR BUILDING NINE ELEVEN
wow america is trippen..they need to pay more attention to uncle rush!
@voiceofreasoning you sound more like a voice of ignorance than of reason. I am Muslim and was born and raised in America. So I am so sorry to tell you I am in the country I came from. I truly hope that you are a Native American with the statement that you just made because if you are not than you should take your own advice and return to the country that you came from. Just to be clear there is a difference between someone’s race and their ethnicity. Islam is a religion not an ethnicity it is practiced by over a billion people worldwide and we come in every race and ethnicity. Arabs make up 15 to 30% of the worlds Muslims and only about 1% are radicals and what they teach and practice is not what is being practiced or taught by the remaining 99%. They say if you don’t know anything you will fall for everything I can see that you fall into that category of person. Do your research on 911 and you will see that the majority of what you heard and most of what you saw is not true. I wish people would stop being so gullible and wake up to see what is really going on.