Jessica Durando, a DiversityInc editorial intern, is the editor-in-chief of The Daily Targum, the Rutgers University student newspaper. The editors of The Daily Targum held a conference call yesterday with the Rev. Al Sharpton about the Don Imus controversy. Here are excerpts of that conversation:

Q. What is your take on the way the team and Coach C. Vivian Stringer handled the controversy?

Sharpton: I think they handled it with absolute dignity. I think they handled it in a way that made us all proud. And I think they handled it in a way that is touching to our hearts. I am very proud of them and I think the country is very proud of them.

I did not try to reach out to them because I didn't want the media to say that I or anyone tried to tell them things they should say. I don't think people can put words in their mouths anyway. I wanted to respect their privacy and let them speak from their hearts. I think they are absolute heroes. I think the coach should be extolled all over this country as an example of what we want our young people to have as a role model.

Q. Do you find the fact that the reaction has been so strong and so widespread encouraging at all in how our society reacts to racism today?

Sharpton: I think it is very encouraging. I think that it gives a lot of hope. I have had people of all races walk up to me and say "I'm glad you did it. I'm glad you helped to make this an issue." And I think that shows that there may be a market with some of this but the overwhelming majority of Americans, white and black ... said, "No, we are not going to tolerate this."  ... It was inspiring to me because the worst thing that could have happened is only blacks got angry ... It was very, very, very important that all the white teammates spoke, and spoke first the day of the press conference.

This is not about black and white, this is about right and wrong. All of us have been wrong and we should acknowledge and say we were wrong, and when we are right we should be extolled. And this is not about beating down Don Imus; this is not about ending his career, this is about not having the careers of women and blacks and others denigrated and prejudged because of their sex or race. I'm not against Don Imus as much as I am for an America that means that you can't be called these names ... This is not the first time; that's why he should pay where he did these abuses. We should not deal with Imus out of revenge, but we can't have a precedent set that you could make a career out of this and you can just keep saying sorry when you get caught and just go on.

Q: Do you feel that in a different time period his comments wouldn't have been considered as harsh?

Sharpton: I think it's an ethical gap. He's almost a generation ahead of me. He's 15 years or so ahead of me. I don't know what generation he's in since slavery is outlawed that you can talk about blacks and women that way. I don't think he misunderstood the generations, I think he has consistently used race and sexism. Bob Hope says he talks about the N-word in private. I think that there are those that give people excuses; there is no excuse of any generation to denigrate people according to sex and race.

One of the things I think is the most bogus thing he said, when he and I debated on "The Today Show" ... is that it comes from black music. I attacked black rappers and hip hoppers that used it. Most hip hop is not using it. Most hip hop is positive. But he acts like he got it from black music and I think that's a cop-out ... It seems he is very selective from what he gets from black music.

Q:  On his show he began his 18th annual radio-thon  .... This radio-a-thon has raised over $40 million since it started. How do you feel about his charitable works?

Sharpton: I think it's good. I don't think that anyone's good works should be attacked. I think that if he is legitimately helping cancer victims, that's a good thing and that people should support it. But I don't think that one excuses another. The question is if he's a good guy that said something bad, he should pay for it.

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