Civility in Iowa
The Quad City Times recently printed an editorial cartoon depicting Republican presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, an Indian-American born in Ohio. The banner behind the Ramaswamy character read “Quad City Republicans welcome anti-woke crusader Vivek Ramaswamy”. So far, so good—the person behind the podium bore no resemblance to Ramaswamy, but no matter.
The rest of the cartoon, however, did not just cross the line of good taste…it obliterated it.
Dozens of chairs were seen, but only three people…each wearing a baseball cap and shouting at the stage… “Muslim!” one shouted… “Show us your birth certificate,” cried another… while the third said, “Get me a slushee, Apu!!!”—a reference to a convenience store clerk character in “The Simpsons” TV show. The “birth certificate” comment was apparently a reference to criticisms made of Barack Obama. As for the “Muslim” comment…Ramaswamy is a Hindu who attended Catholic school.
The cartoon appeared last Wednesday; the next day, the candidate tweeted the following: “It’s sad that this is how the MSM—mainstream media—views Republicans. I’ve met with grassroots conservatives across America and never once experienced the kind of bigotry that I regularly see from the Left.”
The paper has now issued an apology and retraction. The paper’s executive editor said, “The cartoon, while intended to criticize racist ideas and epithets, uses a phrase that is racist and insensitive to members of our Indian American community.” It called publication of the cartoon an oversight, and said it has severed ties with the cartoonist.
Ramaswamy sent a letter to the paper reading, “I accept the apology, and let’s cordially move on. I’d be happy to talk to the cartoonist offline, too – I’m empathetic to people who make mistakes once in awhile. Let’s not go further or see people get fired over it; the cartoonist should in no way be ‘canceled.’ We are all human. The apology is sufficient and well-received.”
Talk about taking the high road.
Do you know how many people had to see that cartoon and approve of it before it made it into the newspaper? Certainly a few at least…to the candidate’s point, apparently that’s how management at the Quad City newspaper sees Republicans in its home area. Wonder how many Republicans will now think twice before renewing their subscriptions…because the paper’s true colors were shown, even in a black and white cartoon.
