Michael Jackson: What We Are Too Scared To Admit

Unless you've been living under a rock the past two weeks, everywhere you look you've seen Michael JacksonMichael Jackson. His music playing on the radio, his face all over the news, thousands upon thousands of blogs and threads talking about him, and his funeral broadcast for the whole world to witness. I haven't seen anything close to this type of media frenzy over someone's death since Princess DianaPrincess Diana's fatal car crash in 1997.

But I think there is a white elephant that has been sitting in everyone’s room throughout this event. For over two decades, he has been the butt of endless jokes and criticism because of his bizarre physical transformation, his closeness to children, and his ever-growing social awkwardness. Most, if not all of us, have made fun of Michael Jackson. Yet since his death, I have heard only praise and kindness spoken of the king of pop. It has amazed me beyond words. Even my most immature friends have been silenced by his passing and I think that says a lot.

Michael Jackson was not just another musician; he was part of our culture and part of who we are. His music is endless; his influence, unmatched. We will not remember Michael Jackson as the strange, soft-spoken, androgynous man that we made fun of for all those years. We will remember him as a beautiful man that single handedly changed the world of music forever.