Is This Racist?

A friend of Daisy’s (who’s a liberal) recently posted this cartoon on his facebook page:

His comment when he posted the cartoon was, “If you don’t see racism in this cartoon, then you are part of the problem. Sorry, just sayin.”

Listen. That cartoon is all kinds of wrong. It’s mean-spirited, in poor taste, bitchy, and not even remotely humorous. But racist? Simply because it includes a black woman and a white woman in which the white woman is presented in a positive light and the black woman isn’t?

Yes, according to Daisy’s friend, and many of the folks who also chimed in.

But there were a couple of stand-out comments written by people who refused to fall into the typical liberal habit of seeing racism in absolutely everything. One in particular, written by a fellow by the name of Ken described the cartoon perfectly:

Some things are racist. This cartoon is not. It’s poorly done. It’s objectifying to both women. But racist? No.

Racism is the belief that one person is superior to another person solely based upon the color of their skin. This cartoon says that Mrs. Trump, by being a model and more traditionally “soft”, is more feminine than Mrs. Obama.

Racist would be to portray their physical attributes identically, but exaggerate Mrs. Obama’s lip, hips, and darken her skin. Or it could just say “black women vs white women” without looking directly like either woman.

This is a rude, simplistic, dumb comparison of two individuals, and nothing is implied about skin color. There’s plenty wrong with it without invoking racism.

_____, you’re the one who can’t see straight on this one. You’re imposing your worldview onto this stupid cartoon. It’s got plenty of faults. You don’t need to add more.

If there were a way to give a standing ovation to someone online, I would have done it as soon as I read that comment.

Incidentally, the creator of the cartoon has responded to the criticism here. Here’s a few excerpts:

I drew a cartoon that was less than complimentary toward the First Lady. Let’s get a few things straight: It wasn’t racist. It was a humorous poke at a public figure. Liberals have praised her for her muscular figure and her ‘super ripped arms.’ Some, like Joan Rivers, have suggested she was a man. Well, transgenders are in vogue right now, right? So what’s the problem?

It was also a test of sorts. I’ve frequently been called racist for drawing cartoons featuring Obama. When someone who is not liberal draws African Americans–look out. That’s not allowed. Well, it needs to be allowed because they’re public figures and collect large salaries from taxpayers. I’ve been told my cartoons are ‘hateful’ and ‘unhelpful’ as well as the expected “I hate your guts why don’t you go kill yourself” fare. Too many Americans are now being silenced by social justice warriors (SJWs) and politically correct scolds who derive weird emotional satisfaction by strutting what they think is their ‘moral superiority.’ This kind of behavior is on the increase and it is stifling free speech to such a degree that even comedians don’t feel comfortable making jokes on college campuses.

I’ve seen very many outrageous cartoons drawn by liberal cartoonists that were critical of Condoleezza Rice, Clarence Thomas, and even Dr. Ben Carson. Some were overtly racist, but those cartoonists receive a pass. Why? Because they’re progressive/liberal artists.

The outrage over one silly cartoon will soon blow over. It will be replaced by some new outrage and the SJW crowd will again go on the warpath. Hmmm…I guess ‘warpath’ is a politically incorrect word to use. Too frickin’ bad! If you SJWs don’t like it, you can go back to your safe spaces.

I agree with the cartoonist that the outrage is hypocritical, pointless, and that it’ll likely be short-lived. The cartoon was stupid, but racist? I agree with Ken on that one.

Discuss.