Self,
This morning I heard on 102.3FM KJLH (Los angeles station owned by Stevie Wonder) about a cartoon that was published in the New York Post. The description of the cartoon horrible, I couldn't believe it, I had to look to see if I could find it online. To make a point.
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Although I think the image speaks for itself, let's discuss its implication. Two police officers are standing over the body of a monkey they just shot (twice) and one officer says to the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."
Although I think the image speaks for itself, let's discuss its implication. Two police officers are standing over the body of a monkey they just shot (twice) and one officer says to the other, "They'll have to find someone else to write the next stimulus bill."
So let's see;
1) Historically African-americans have been derogatorily represented as apes.
2) The President is an African-american man.
3) The President is working on creating/writing a stimulus bill.
So basically the cartoonist just shot the President, right? Get it. Got it.
The report on the radio said that Al Sharpton commented on his objection to the cartoon. (As he and everyone else should.) The Post's response was to defend the cartoonist, calling the cartoon a satire. Following that by saying, Sharpton was just looking for publicity. WTF!!!
Granted I and a lot of other people are probably tired of seeing Al Sharpton's face, but rarely does he call smoke when there isn't a fire (regardless of the size of the flames.) So in this case, the Post is wrong about Sharpton.
As for the cartoon being a satire. Well I can see what the cartoonist may have meant and why the Post would say that. I suppose the cartoonist isn't a supporter of the stimulus proposal, but he went the wrong way with it. So maybe the artist thinks the stimulus is a joke, crap etc etc. but why not draw a bull eliminating some papers that said "stimulus package," then everyone would have got that he thought it was some bullsh*t. As for the published cartoon itself there are other ways the artist could have went. Instead of the monkey, it could have been a jackass, the "village idiot," or a person with a balloon head. The message of his opinion would have been made clear. But No the artist went racial. And the editor who appoved the cartoon for publishing didn't catch it so probably has the same racial prejudices and therefore thought nothing was wrong with the image.
Looking at the drawing, the monkey isn't armed. The monkey isn't committing any type of crime. So the cartoon is also racial in the way that the police just shot a derogatorily depicted black man without reason. So the comment about finding another person to write the stimulus bill can be interepreted as "Oops, we just shot another n*gga and it was the wrong n*gga to shoot, now they have to find someone else to right the stimulus bill."
All that is in the drawing but folks are over reacting for publicity?
Lesson here:
Racism is so entrenched in some folks that the advancement that our 44th President represent, there is still a long way to go.
Sincerely,
Pharaoh
This is the cartoon from the issue on the day before...I think it's funny satire!
8 comments:
I just read about this on an online newspaper a few minutes ago... I couldn't believe it myself, and I am very upset with the newspaper for that. The artist ought to be ashamed. I have no respect for him, nor will I be reading from that newspaper anymore. They won't have my patronage... (if and when I do get some money).
Oh but the cartoon at the bottom is pretty funny. -_^
I'm someone who tends to give everyone the benefit of the doubt, but that's something I cannot do with this situation. I can fully understand the cartoonist not being in favor of the bill, and I know 100% he could of went a completely different route in his way of showing it. And it would be one thing is someone drew this and posted it in an online forum but it wasn't it was posted in a newspaper read by people all over the country.
It's stuff like this that makes me realize why certain family members of mine have a deep hatred towards white people.
All I can say is WTF!!!??? I am silent, so bothered that I have no words.
Yeah I was listening to the story on HOT97 here on the east coast and I was like thats just not even funny at all. I hate the NEW YORK POST they report garbage half the dam time...ughhh
Good Blog sir
there are no amount of words to justify this cartoon...guess they are just concern about selling papers
I will probably take flack for this but I disagree a bit. I agree with all of your points that you make about the cartoon and why it enraged so many people. The post, who has a history of pushing the envelope should have seen the way in which this could have been taken. What it actually show is a lack of cultural awareness or an ignorance to it, purposeful or not.
But there is one aspect that gets little attention about this whole cartoon. The cartoon is, or is suppose to be, depicting two current events. The first of course is the stimulus, but the second, a less captured story, is that of the pet chimp that got loose from her owner, attacking a women, mauling and amputating her in the process. The police were called in and had to shoot the chimp. It happened the day before this cartoon came out. With that bit of information I read this cartoon somewhat differently. I wouldn't had I not had that bit of information, but I did once I got it.
Whether its a tactic to cover their ass or truth, I think it adds another element to the story, which makes me wonder why no one adds this aspect when reporting. Granted the cartoon may still be offensive but in order to adequately assess the situation all the information must freely be given.
I could go on but I'll stop for now.
Prince Esquire,
I hear what you saying and pushing the envelope is one thing. I guess maybe the chimp should have had a severed arm in its paws.
However that still doesn't quite let them off the hook about the stimulus bill comment.
now but it puts it in a different light. saying something so easy a monkey could do it is a general statement. I even remember that commercial for career builder where the guy is working with a bunch of monkeys in suits (hence the term monkey suit) and they flash need a new job. I totally agree with the sensitivity issue and the racial history, but you want to know the funny thing, the scary thing about isms, in this case racism is that it limits you. Even when you try to get out from under it, it limits you. In this case it limits the cartoonist to not being able to use a reference based on history even though the broader reference may be to ineptitude on the part of an individual or party; so now we get stuck in this cycle where things can't be said, even if racially harmless, which means we never truly get an even playing field because judgements can't get dispersed evenly without fear of censorship. Its a slipper slope to want things to be fairly level but to have so may mine fields that remind you of an uneven past and don't allow for an even handed present.
If he judge individuals or parties on their merit and we read things with this lens then racism (and sexism, etc.) becomes obsolete. But because of history we can't let things go (and often times shouldn't) so we (as a nation of people) can't fully movie forward. So where do we go?
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