A cartoonist for The New York Post, has whipped up controversy with a few strokes of his pen. (Check out Delonas’ portfolio of cartoons and pull up the one for February 18, 2009 – also seen here on the left).
Now, I’m not the sharpest tool in the shed (”gullible” has been a word used in my presence more than once), but even I blanched when I saw this cartoon. What were the editors at the Post thinking?!?!?!
Critics have decried the use of a monkey image to reference the author of the stimulus bill, legislation which was vigorously promoted by our first Black American president.
Others decry the charges of racism swirling around, citing (1) the cartoon is of a chimpanzee, not a monkey, (2) Congress authored the bill, not President Obama, (3) people are reading too much into a simple, contextually-relevant cartoon, and (4) former President Bush was lampooned viciously and tastelessly for years – where was the public outcry then?
The Post’s editor-in-chief released a statement in response to the uproar: “The cartoon is a clear parody of a current news event, to wit the shooting of a violent chimpanzee in Connecticut. It broadly mocks Washington’s efforts to revive the economy.”
Want to jump into the fray? What is/was your reaction to the cartoon?
2-19-2009 10:33:51
I thought it was awful. And the fact that so many people are talking/arguing about it — and questioning its very intention — shows me that it should have been pulled from the getgo. Even if no racial slur was intended, the cartoon simply failed to communicate its alleged point.
2-19-2009 11:45:55
The alternative explanations are no better than what is easily someone’s first impression. Why does the New York Post feel a need to connect a tragic personal incident to the challenge to bring stability to our nation’s economy, an instability due to the policies of the previous administration? This cartoon goes way beyond lampooning a president. Any way you interpret it, the cartoon is racist.
2-19-2009 20:01:55
it’s shocking (yes, things still shock me) and disgusting on so many levels.
2-21-2009 22:35:49
I thought it was offensive and inflammatory, and crossed a dangerous line. I’m critical of any portrayal like that, regardless of my political leanings. There were some disturbing images during Mr. Bush’s presidency that I also criticized.