The Women's Media Center on Fifth Avenue claims "it
strives to make women visible and powerful in the media."
Even though I've written almost a thousand op-ed columns for New
York newspapers in the last 10 years, this organization and its
president, Carol Jenkins, hasn't a clue that I'm a conservative.
Nevertheless, I'm on their mailing list and have never responded
to their notices until now. Ms. Jenkins sent me a "Dear
Alicia" note asking me to join in the outrage over the
insulting Obamas New Yorker cartoon.
She wrote: "The New Yorker owes the Obamas, and the rest of
us, an apology - and retraction of the cover. I know that those
of us who demand this will be called predictable 'whiners,'
enemies of free speech and, of course, humorless. But a line was
crossed here by a publication seemingly not the least bit in
touch with the murmuring, low grade fires of unrest burning
across this country. Not clever enough by half, the cartoon
reinforces the worst fears of those who experience the Obamas as
'unknown' and legitimizes those who've been agitating a colossal
smear effort."
To which I responded: "I also have been spending
considerable time thinking about the so-called satiric New Yorker
cover of the Obamas but my take is somewhat different. Yes, I did
find it offensive but at least Michelle Obama is depicted as a
strong albeit radical black woman. I don't recall much discussion
of the cartoons by noted artists like Doonesbury, Oliphant and
Danziger depicting Secretary of State Condoleezza Rice with
slavery connotations. I've never seen much outrage at the
cartoons labeling Clarence Thomas as an Uncle Tom, either.
Apparently, despicable and racist satirical cartoons are fine
when mocking conservative black Republicans but are not to be
tolerated when Democrats are the foil."
I haven't read the New Yorker magazine in quite a while, and when
I would occasionally pick it up in a doctor's office, I'd skim
through it for the cartoons, which were always rather clever.
Many years ago I recall one depicting a black man talking to a
white man at a cocktail party with the latter saying (as best I
can remember), "I'm sorry, but I think you've made a
mistake. Someone who's been oppressing you for a hundred years
would be much older." Now that was funny. This New Yorker
cover was supposed to be satirical but satire sometimes sails
over one's head. Vanity Fair just released a rather lame cartoon
on its Web site showing McCain on a walker, his wife holding
pills, and the Constitution burning under a fireplace with
President Bush's portrait overhead.
According to Ms. Jenkins, the "characterization of Michelle
Obama is particularly gratuitous - the militant, angry black
woman - complete with an attack weapon. In the old days, before
everybody (women, people of color, and the working class) got hot
under the collar, this 'satire' would have been acceptable, ever
so charming stuff. Now it's singularly obtuse, and worse. It
makes one wonder, again, about the makeup of the New Yorker staff
- was it not diverse enough to elicit even a single
protest?"
There was no big fuss about Garry Trudeau's
"Doonesbury" cartoon of Mr. Bush referring to Ms. Rice
as "brown sugar," or Ted Rall's cartoon having Ms. Rice
proclaim herself Mr. Bush's "House nigga." Noted
political cartoonist Pat Oliphant showed Ms. Rice as a parrot
with big lips and Jeff Danziger had her muttering like Butterfly
McQueen's character Prissy in "Gone With the Wind." Nor
has there been any concerted effort to condemn Don Wright's
cartoon showing Justice Thomas as Justice Scalia's lawn jockey.
When has-been calypso singer Harry Belafonte called Colin Powell,
the first black Secretary of State, a house Negro doing the work
of his master, Mr. Powell responded with true diplomatic grace
that criticism of his political position was fine, "But to
use a slave reference, I think, is unfortunate and is a throwback
to another time and another place that I wish Harry had thought
twice about using."
In each case those vilified responded in a dignified, graceful
manner ensuring that the defiler would be the one who came off
looking stupid. Besides, getting angry about a cartoon is so
yesterday.
So, Ms. Jenkins, I'm afraid I won't sign your petition of protest
to the publisher of the New Yorker until you recognize that it's
just as offensive to ridicule black Republicans. Considering that
the Women's Media Center was founded in 2005 by Jane Fonda and
Gloria Steinem, you may have a long wait.