14 DAY TRIAL // The November issue of Ebony Magazine, the leading black lifestyle publication, is taking a hammer to Bill Cosby’s legacy by drawing a clear line between him as a person and his lovable, iconic character Cliff Huxtable on The Bill Cosby show.
The photo, revealed on Twitter some hours ago, has already gone viral, and it’s not difficult to understand why: it shows a photo from the popular TV series, framed in glass.
The glass is shattered right above Cosby’s face, which is to mean that his reputation should not be the same as before 2 scores of women came forward to claim he drugged and raped them, using his star power to lure them in places they were completely powerless.
Cosby can’t be charged for the alleged crimes because the statute of limitations on them has long expired, but he can still be tried in the court of public opinion. Ebony plans to do just that with the September issue, from the looks of things.
In a now-deleted post on Facebook (screencapped by USA Today), Editor-in-Chief Kierna Mayo explained that she expected backlash and wild praise in almost equal measure for the cover. She stands by the decision: the Bill Cosby conversation is one that America simply must have.
“I believe with everything that our collective healing (from this and all traumas) is tied to baring truths, confronting selves, and dismantling crutches. We aim to uplift. However, sometimes before you rise up, you break down,” Mayo says.
#ICYMI - our November issue separates Cliff Huxtable & Bill Cosby. Start the conversation: http://t.co/ALEaVEslpO pic.twitter.com/ntL4qTrotV
— EBONY MAGAZINE (@EBONYMag) October 16, 2015