NY Post Apologizes...Sort Of

After much pressure and criticism the New York Post finally made an apology for cartoonist Sean Delonas' cartoon which was published on Wednesday February 18. The Post claims the cartoon was just that; a cartoon, the intent being to mock those who wrote the stimulus bill and was in no way intended to hint at the race of President Barack Obama. Those who expressed dissent over the cartoon have been criticized for being overly sensitive and for making a mountain of a mole hill.

While the apology by the Post might be a bit genuine, the cartoon was just not a cartoon. Although the cartoon made reference to Travis the Connecticut chimp who was shot earlier in the week anyone with a little common sense can deduce that Travis was not the intended brunt of the joke. Comparisons of people of African descent to chimpanzees is not novel. And while it may be argued that President Obama did not directly write the stimulus bill, the bill is still the President's agenda. We may have an African-American president in office, but Delonas' cartoon shows that race is still an issue and not even the President is exempt.