It has been almost two months since A&E pulled Dog the Bounty Hunter off the air, after its star, Duane "Dog" Chapman, was heard using the N-word repeatedly during a taped conversation between him and his son, Tucker.  While Chapman's use of the racial slur outraged many members of the African-American community, Roy Innis, chairman of the Congress of Racial Equality (CORE), recently expressed his desire to have the famed bounty hunter's show back in the air, saying that he is convinced Chapman is not at all racist.

"Duane has taken ownership of the damage of his words and has taken on the responsibility of being a racial healer for our country," Innis told The New York Sun's Alicia Colon.  "I have been with this man several times and had extensive dialogues with him.  [My son] Niger and I consider him and his wife good friends.  Duane is a changed man and has a higher purpose.  Popular television is a wasteland of meaningless titillation and degradation.  The Dog's potential to take his celebrity and turn it into something redeeming for our culture and society is immense.  It is for these reasons that we want [Dog the Bounty Hunter] back on the air."

Innis, however, did not always feel this way about Duane Chapman.  When the controversy broke out in late October, Innis was among the first to tell the network to pull the plug on Dog the Bounty Hunter.

"[But after] meeting with him and his wife, Beth, and hearing his side of the story, we realized that the controversy had unjustly spiraled out of control without context,” Innis said.

Chapman has done much to try to repair the damage that his words have caused, as well as restore his positive image.  He has made several appearances on television, apologizing for his actions.  In speaking with Colon, Chapman discussed all the details regarding the taped conversation, and explained that the reason why he did not expound on them when he appeared on Larry King Live is because he wanted to take responsibility and not say anything that would further hurt his son's African-American girlfriend, who was the subject of the conversation.

Most recently, Chapman joined the Brotherhood Organization of New Destiny (BOND) in handing out toys to numerous children.  BOND founder Reverend Jesse Lee Peterson said in a statement that while they “don't condone racial slurs,” they believe Chapman “sincerely wants to make amends to the black community, and deserves a second chance.”

On January 21, Chapman will serve as a special guest at CORE's Martin Luther King celebration in Sheraton Hotel.


-Lisa Claustro, BuddyTV Staff Columnist
Source: The New York Sun
(Image Courtesy of A&E)