Censorship and Rap Song Words

I am writing in response to Danny Goldberg’s Op-Ed column “A Song’s Just a Song; Censorship Is Wrong” (Feb. 7). Perhaps his perceptions of anti-Semitism have been blurred by his place in the world of music publishing; I find the lyrics quoted by him completely unambiguous and thoroughly, offensively, anti-Semitic. He asks, “Why should Jewish sensitivity be more important (than those of women, gays, blacks, Catholics, etc.)?”

He seems to have forgotten that 6 million of us died in the Nazi camps, a mass murder made possible, in part, by anti-Semitic propaganda. The German people were bombarded by Jew-hating speeches, newspapers, books, magazine articles, and yes, even songs.

No, I am not advocating censorship of the recordings of Public Enemy, whose name, I think, speaks for itself. But a song is not always just a song, when it incites to hate--and I will certainly exert my public opinion to express distaste for the publishing company which has chosen to record it. I had never heard of this record before Goldberg’s column; I do not find anything amusing in rap music doggerel.

I will now make time to write a letter to CBS, urging its officials to drop this group.

ELINOR LENCH

Sepulveda