The Washington Post takes down cartoon amid backlash for a racist depiction of Palestinians and Arabs
The Washington Post has also apologized after publishing a political cartoon about the Israel-Hamas war
Washington Post has taken down a cartoon amid backlash for a racist depiction of Palestinians and Arabs.
The cartoon by Michael Ramirez, titled “Human Shields,” published on Tuesday drew criticism both for its message and the exaggerated features that showed a Hamas leader using civilians as human shields.
The racist cartoon was also published in Tuesday’s print newspaper. However the social media post was taken down on Wednesday, and the paper issued an apology.
“Our section is aimed at finding commonalities, understanding the bonds that hold us together, even in the darkest times,” Shipley wrote. “In this spirit, we have taken down the drawing.”
On the other hand, the opinions section also ran several letters criticizing the decision to run the cartoon.
Social media users called it “in poor taste,” criticizing the publication
In a post on Instagram, Palestinian-American poet Remi Kanazi wrote: “This is the Washington Post. This is the kind of anti-Palestinian racism that’s acceptable for publication.”
Left-wing British activist Owen Jones called the cartoon an example of “racist dehumanization.”
This is a cartoon in the Washington Post.
It's not even subtle in its racism.
This racist dehumanisation is always a precondition for mass murder of the sort currently taking place in Gaza. https://t.co/W7iKv15VU7 pic.twitter.com/bxisnKSm68
— Owen Jones (@OwenJones84) November 8, 2023
The cartoon by Michael Ramirez, titled “Human Shields,” featured a man with a large nose and snarling mouth, labeled “Hamas,” standing bound with ropes to four alarmed children and a cowering woman in a hijab. “How dare Israel attack civilians …” he says.
This cartoon is so anti-Muslim, so racist it boggles the mind that any newspaper could print it. Beyond which, Israel has murdered over 4,000 children- do you have absolutely no shame depicting Palestinian children in this manner? What a disgrace @washingtonpost. https://t.co/QVEk08ScdP
— fatima bhutto (@fbhutto) November 8, 2023
As well as justifying the killing of Palestinians, this cartoon, published in the Washington Post is racist, Islamophobic, dehumanising & anti-Palestinian. This, right here, is also an example as to why so many Arab journalists are feeling frustrated, exhausted & targeted. pic.twitter.com/Yzu7tKqIWo
— Hind Hassan (@HindHassanNews) November 8, 2023
Israel has killed at least 10,000 Palestinians, 4,237 of them children, in Gaza over the past month.
That is twice as many than the total number of Palestinian children killed in the West Bank and Gaza combined since 1967 via @DCIsecretariathttps://t.co/asGbTcIzET
— Mona Eltahawy (@monaeltahawy) November 8, 2023
If you didn’t think folks at the @washingtonpost were racist and Islamophobic, check out this cartoon they published pic.twitter.com/s88wZB4ZFP
— Khaled Beydoun (@KhaledBeydoun) November 9, 2023
This is the most vile and racist cartoon I’ve seen in a while and it’s not some fringe outlet. It’s the @washingtonpost…
Just wow https://t.co/a7cautbFHz
— Dr. Omar Suleiman (@omarsuleiman504) November 8, 2023
Ramirez is a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner on the staff of the Las Vegas Review-Journal, who started contributing cartoons to The Post in May.
This wasn’t his first controversy targeting the Israel-Hamas conflict.
Last week he published a cartoon that showed a woman wearing a Black Lives Matter T-shirt, holding up a sign that said “Terrorist Lives Matter” and “Blame Israel. Support Hamas.”
