A political cartoon depicting Christine Blasey Ford caused controversy on Twitter.

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Political cartoon mocking Christine Blasey Ford infuriates Twitter

The cartoon depicts Ford making lavish requests.

 

Sunny Kim

IRL

Posted on Sep 24, 2018   Updated on May 21, 2021, 5:46 am CDT

People on Twitter are outraged by a political cartoon depicting Christine Blasey Ford demanding roses, sparkling water, and a bowl of green M&M’s ahead of the testimony she’ll present to the Senate Judiciary Committee this Thursday. Ford has accused Supreme Court nominee Brett Kavanaugh of sexually assaulting her when they were both teenagers.

The Indianapolis Star newspaper published the cartoon in its print edition and online on Sunday, causing an eruption of anger and disappointment on social media, according to BuzzFeed News.

People criticizing the cartoon on Twitter said that the depiction of Ford only discourages others to come forward in cases of sexual assault and sexual harassment.

https://twitter.com/brischneck/status/1044202688941084674

https://twitter.com/nathanieltbell/status/1044028616219262977?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeednews.com%2Farticle%2Ftasneemnashrulla%2Fpeople-are-outraged-by-this-cartoon-of-christine-blasey-ford

People also said the cartoon made light of sexual assault by comparing Ford’s demands for a fair trial to lavish requests.

https://twitter.com/kbomalley/status/1044025209077071872?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeednews.com%2Farticle%2Ftasneemnashrulla%2Fpeople-are-outraged-by-this-cartoon-of-christine-blasey-ford

Gary Varvel is the political cartoonist who drew the picture of Ford. Apparently, some people had previously canceled their Star subscriptions because of Varvel’s cartoons.

https://twitter.com/swalter14/status/1044061892355010560?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.buzzfeednews.com%2Farticle%2Ftasneemnashrulla%2Fpeople-are-outraged-by-this-cartoon-of-christine-blasey-ford

Readers demanded Varvel apologize, while others want him fired.

The Star’s executive editor Ronnie Ramos apologized in a column on Monday, writing that “readers deserved better” and that the cartoon “did not meet [their] high standards.”

Ramos also stated that Varvel wasn’t aiming to discredit Ford and quoted him in the column. “My cartoon was focused only on Ford’s demands, not on whether she was telling the truth,” Varvel said. “As a husband and father of a daughter and granddaughter, I take sexual harassment very seriously.”

Still, people called the cartoon “horrendously stupid,” “tone deaf,” and “misogynistic.”

But a few defended Varvel. One user said that the cartoon only addressed Ford’s “methods” and not accusations sexual assault.

H/T BuzzFeed News

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*First Published: Sep 24, 2018, 6:37 pm CDT