Observation #1: it’s not racist.
Conservatives and Republican pundits in Virginia and elsewhere are “pouncing”on an online political cartoon re-posted by the Powhatan County Democrats, who were transparently trying to change the subject after their party’s candidate for Virginia Governor looked like a coward and sounded like a fool in her recent debate with the Republican candidate, Lieutenant Governor Winsome Earle-Sears.
“The Democrat party of Virginia everyone. Open racism, open hatred, and endorsed violent fantasies. Where is the bottom of their depravity? This is disgusting,” quoth one social media wag in a tweet widely quoted by critics. Twitchy, the conservative website that focuses almost entirely on goings on at “X,” called the cartoon “blatantly racist.”
Much as it gives me pleasure to see Democrats and progressives “hoist by their own petard,” the petard in this case being reflex race-baiting, it’s still an unethical tactic. Here is the real Sears…
That cartoon is well within the bounds of traditional caricature practice. For example, here is legendary show business cartoonist Al Hirschfield’s cartoon portrait of the great Sammy Davis Jr:
Sammy loved it, but like the Sears cartoon, it traffics in African-American facial characteristics. How would you draw a caricature of Davis (or Sears) without doing so?
Ah, but Democrats so smothered the culture with hypersensitivity (and fear) regarding any criticism, or jokes, or satire, or mockery, of blacks as part of Barack and Michelle Obama’s protective force field that this aspect of free speech has been perhaps permanently suppressed. For eight years, and really to this day five years after Obama (officially) left office, Saturday Night Live treated Barack Obama with metaphorical kid gloves. To do otherwise, you see, would be “racist,” punching down, because by definition American blacks are already being mistreated and abused, even when one of them is President of the United States. Oh for those halcyon days when black comics like Eddie Murphy and the Wayans brothers could mock fellow blacks with gusto!
What is wrong with the Sears cartoon is that it’s a lousy political cartoon, like most political cartoons, and the equivalent of a mean grade school student’s drawing aimed at an unpopular classmate. It is also a dishonest cartoon, deliberately misrepresenting the debate, which will be remembered, if Spanberger loses as she should, for the Democrat’s refusal to say that she either endorses or no longer endorses Democratic AG candidate Jay Jones. Jones said that killing the children of his political opponents could be justified, and because of the way he kept returning to that theme, made it clear that he wasn’t kidding. Nonetheless, in the debate the Congresswoman resorted to mealy-mouthed evasive Gary Conditisms like “As of now, it’s up to every voter to make their own individual decision. I am running for governor. I am accountable for the words that I say.”
It would have also been nice if the Democrats had the guts to stand up for their own tactics, but of course they pulled the post with the cartoon, issuing an anti-free speech, pro heckler’s veto grovel: “We reposted an online political cartoon that some people thought had racist overtones. That was certainly not our intent. We have deleted it out of respect to anyone who took it that way.”
Ladies and gentlemen, the Democratic Party! Any speech that offends anyone should be retracted, censored or blocked out of “respect”!
Post script: In case you have forgotten about Rep. Condit, he was widely suspected of doing away with his comely young intern Chandra Levy in 2001, and when he finally agreed to be interviewed on the subject (by Connie Chung, on ABC) her kept repeating the same lawyer-composed mantra when Chung asked what the exact nature of the relationship was, saying, “I’ve been married 34 years. I have not been a perfect man. I have made mistakes in my life. But out of respect for my family, out of a specific request by the Levy family, it is best that I not get into the details of the relationship.” This made him look suspicious and guilty. (He wasn’t guilty, however, of murder.)
Ethics Alarms 
While the cartoon is sophomoric, you know that if the parties of the two candidates were reversed, it would be front page “racism” charges.
I think most of us vote on the basis not only because of stands on issues, but also of perceived competence and qualifications of candidates. However, we were told over and over by top Democrat leaders and pundits that the ONLY reason Kamala Harris lost was because voters were “racist and misogynistic”.
And now we have the same people in Virginia voting against a black woman, while hurling derogatory cartoons, ads, and photos of her across all media. Disagree with Sears, but explain rationally the reasons why, and quit ignoring the Dem’s previous attacks against voters who thoughtfully chose another candidate.
I saw this cartoon yesterday, and while I agree this is a bad cartoon, I fail to see the racism.
My gut feeling is that playing the race card by any political party is the equivalence of a “Yo Mama” yoke. It used to be back in the Seventies and Eighties that an accusation of racism was followed by soul searching under the assumption that the accusation had some merit. In the 21st century accusations of racism always came from one side and always for naked political reasons, and the other side reacted with angry denials, while still recognizing that playing the race card during election season helped the Democrats to over 90 percent of the black vote. After the election of Trump in 2024 the MAGA Republicans have thrown of their fear of the race card, and laughing about it. The powerlessness of the Democrats in using the race card was aptly demonstrated in the contrived anger of Democrat politicians such as Hakeem Jeffries at the sombrero memes during the shutdown.
Now the Republicans are at the threshold of electing the first black governor in the USA they are in the position to play the race card back at the Democrats. The first time the Republicans played the race card (and played it well) was at a protest outside an Arlington school board meeting where Winsome Earle – Sears was speaking. The point may not be that the sign and the cartoon are racially inappropriate, it is the appearance of impropriety that matters. This appearance of impropriety has been cultivated by decades long race card playing by the Democrats.
Tactically the Republicans are playing it brilliantly. The ruckus about the placard below led to Winsome Earle – Sears narrowing the gap with Abigail Spanberger significantly. The controversy about the cartoon put the Democrats again on the defensive, evidenced by them walking away from the cartoon. And as a side effect it helps playing the race card by Democrats loose their power.
When Winsome Earle – Sears wins the election, the good tactical play is one more reason for the GOP to open a bottle of champagne, and looking at the portrait of the late great sainted and often maligned former Senate Leader Harry Reid, toasting him with the immortal words from his mouth “It worked, didn’t it”? Because for all his flaws, Harry Reid knew how the game is played. And the Republicans today, cynical as it may appear, play the game brilliantly. The ethical value that matters in this context is “competence”. From that perspective I would consider playing the race card by the Republicans ethical.
The candidate for AG’s emails so distracted me, I thought we were talking about the AG’s race. The first black governor. Isn’t that amazing. Shouldn’t the Dems have had this woman declared governor by acclamation? She’s of color! How could they deny her what’s rightfully hers and hand it to a lily white, skinny, super-privileged, white woman?
The cartoon actually could be interpreted as racially motivated as in “Sears is just another uppity minority who thinks the rules don’t apply to her.” I suspect that was undertone of the cartoon. Sears did not act petulant in that debate.
However, the issue here is not that Sears interrupted her or that she supports evil Orange Tyrant Man Super Evil; the issue is that Spanberger’s performance was abysmal, even to the point that the moderator kept calling on her to answer the “yes or no” formed questions rather than offer empty filibuster answers to “should men compete in women’s sports” questions. Sears correctly asked, “yes or no?” Spanberger looked unprepared and insecure offering “it is up to local schools, unions and parents” to decide non-answers, which everyone knows means, “yes, men should compete in girls’ sports.”
Sears, on the other hand, was direct and confident. That doesn’t surprise me, though, having heard her speak. She is bright, very quick on her feet, and quite a political force to be reckoned with. And, she has charisma for days. I hope she is the new generation in the GOP.
jvb
This cartoon immediately reminded me of the Serena Williams one, which was discussed here back in 2018: https://ethicsalarms.com/2018/09/10/ethics-quiz-the-racist-sexist-cartoon/
The only real difference is that the Williams cartoon hewed closer to reality, and was drawn with more skill. I also think that Democrats are estopped from criticizing any politician who happens to be black, after claiming that any criticism of a black politician is evidence of racism.