Let me begin by saying that I didn’t need to write this.
There was a time when the identify Cornel West meant one thing to me. To many people, in actual fact. There was a time when he was one of many sharpest ethical minds within the public sq.; a philosophical firebrand who challenged methods, elevated Black radical thought, and demanded the world reckon with justice, fact, and dignity. That point was actual, however sadly, that point has handed.
And but, in 2025, by some means Dr. West will take the stage because the graduation speaker at Morehouse Faculty, my esteemed alma mater. I say this not with anger, however with disappointment.
As a Morehouse man, I consider within the sanctity of our traditions, particularly our graduation. That stage is a sacred one, a spot for celebrating the triumph, imaginative and prescient, and integrity of those younger Black males earlier than they’re loosed upon a hostile world. It shouldn’t be used for popularity rehab — definitely not for males who’ve spent the final 20 years abandoning the very values they as soon as claimed to champion.
This isn’t about politics. That is about priorities.
Cornel West has, for the higher a part of twenty years, chosen movie star over group. From his notorious spoken phrase album to his media appearances alongside Invoice Maher and Tucker Carlson, Dr. West has steadily remodeled himself from a scholar of the individuals to a caricature of 1. It’s solely acceptable that I point out Matrix Reloaded right here. It wasn’t his fault, nevertheless it doesn’t assist his case.
His phrases are nonetheless lofty, his diction nonetheless florid, however there’s a hollowness to his message now, a efficiency quite than a goal. An act, not a calling. A pantomime of philosophical considering.
On the peak of Barack Obama’s presidency, when so many people had been reckoning with the importance of a Black man within the White Home, it was Cornel West and his longtime ally Tavis Smiley who appeared most dedicated to tearing that second down. Criticism is truthful. Constructive critique is critical. However what West and Smiley provided wasn’t critique; it was contempt. It was private. Petty. Unrelenting. Whereas they claimed to talk on behalf of “the individuals,” they spent extra time bashing Obama from cable information inexperienced rooms than they did organizing or investing in precise Black communities.
And now, as Cornel West’s star fades, as his once-revered presence in academia has change into a cautionary story, he returns to us—to Morehouse, to HBCUs—as if we’re obligated to offer cowl. We’re not. These instances are too severe to be wasted on unserious individuals.
Morehouse, maybe greater than every other establishment, understands the load of the second we’re in.
We stay in a time of financial uncertainty, social unrest, and ideological warfare. Our younger males are getting ready to enter a world the place the stakes have by no means been increased. The category of 2025 deserves to be celebrated by somebody who sees them, who displays their hopes, and who challenges them to rise. They deserve a speaker who has walked the stroll, who has dedicated themselves to excellence of their given discipline, not simply self-aggrandizement by efficiency, however an instance of goal.
Dr. Cornel West has not achieved that.
He spent the higher a part of his profession currying favor with the Ivy League: Harvard, Princeton, Yale. These are the establishments that outlined his trajectory, that gave him his platform. That he now returns to the Black group searching for redemption, after years of neglect, shouldn’t be solely ironic, it’s opportunistic.
He’s been an irregular fixture with no sustained presence inside the HBCU panorama. He has not taught in our lecture rooms, mentored our college students, or contributed meaningfully to our infrastructure. And but he now needs to make use of one among our most revered phases—a end result of generations of Black excellence and wrestle—as a platform to shine the turd of his public picture. These instances are too severe to be wasted on unserious individuals.
There are leaders amongst us (sure, a few of them Morehouse males) who’ve carried the mantle of Black excellence with humility and consistency. There are public servants, politicians, educators, artists, and entrepreneurs who haven’t solely spoken about justice however have achieved the work. Giants in tech, media, and schooling who’re dwelling testaments to what Morehouse stands for. I might identify names, however that’s not what that is about. These are the sorts of males who must be thought-about. These voices must be elevated.
Selecting Cornel West sends a combined message. It tells our graduates that notoriety issues greater than consistency. That eloquence trumps engagement. {That a} once-great voice, irrespective of how far it has strayed, is value greater than the numerous steadfast ones in our group. That one who has but to atone must be forgiven due to their standing and never their actions.
That isn’t the Morehouse I do know. That isn’t the Morehouse that raised me.
I perceive the temptation of movie star. I perceive the attract of a reputation that also rings out to many, even when its echo has grown faint. However we have to be cautious of who we enable to characterize us at our most pivotal moments. Graduation isn’t just a ceremony, it’s a declaration. A second of religious inheritance. And it have to be handled with reverence.
Dr. West, for all his early brilliance, has not earned that proper.
These instances are too severe to be wasted on unserious individuals.
Our younger males deserve extra. Greater than recycled rhetoric. Greater than media posturing. Greater than a person who, traditionally, turned his again on the establishments which have at all times stood for us.
Not that our esteemed president, Dr. David Thomas, cares. That is his final commencement. As that is his swan track, it’s extra of a Worth Is Proper trombone than a triumphant march out the door.
Allow us to maintain the road. Allow us to shield the stage. Allow us to make allowances for voices that also consider within the energy of service over stardom.
Corey Richardson is initially from Newport Information, Va., and at present lives in Chicago, Ailing. Advert man by commerce, Dad man in life, and grilled meat fanatic, Corey spends his time crafting phrases, cheering on beleaguered Washington, D.C., sports activities franchises, and yelling obscenities at himself on golf programs. You may take a look at his web site: www.theinstigationdepartment.com or subscribe to his Substack: theinstigationreport.substack.com for extra on him and his happenings.
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