The following blurbs appeared on the back of Aaron McGruder's first collection of strips, The Boondocks: Because I Know You Don't Read the Newspaper (2000):
"The most appalling of McGruder's reckless charges was that BET 'does not serve the interest of black people.' Our response to this slanderous assertion is that the 500-plus dedicated employees of BET do more in one day to serve the interest of African-Americans than this young man has done in his entire life."
--Robert Johnson, President and CEO, BET Holdings, Inc.
"The Boondocks is a deliciously amusing work that creatively challenges us with intense substance, cleverly disguised as a humorous comic strip. Aaron McGruder is one of the most important voices of his generation and a true credit to his race."Smiley and Johnson would eventually part ways, and in some ways, their contradictory book blurbs seemed to foreshadow their differences.
--Tavis Smiley, Author and Host of BET Tonight
The Johnson quotation is especially notable since book blurbs are typically laudatory. However, this non-complimentary blurb effectively suggests that McGruder makes "appalling," "reckless," and "slanderous" remarks.
Of course, the fact that McGruder and his 10-year-old protagonist might cause problems for a powerful CEO likely helped build street cred and broad interest in The Boondocks.
Related: Aaron McGruder Week
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