An editorial cartoon published in a newspaper in Iowa depicted voters subjecting Indian American presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy to racist comments.
The paper has since apologized and removed it from its online edition after Ramaswamy says he has “never once experienced the kind of bigotry that I regularly see from the left.”
“It’s sad that this is how the MSM (main stream media) views Republicans,” the GOP candidate tweeted.
The cartoon depicted him addressing what he called MAGA friends.
“Muslim,” yelled one depicted voter. Ramaswamy is Hindu.
“Show us your birth certificate,” screamed another apparently in an attempt to ridicule birther voters, a reference to those voters who believed then-candidate Trump that Barack Obama was not an American and thus ineligible to run for president.
“Get me a slushee, Apu,” a rift on Apu from the Simpsons which stereotyped Indian Americans as 7-11 clerks speaking in broken English.
The Quad City Times wrote an article formally apologizing for the cartoon.
“Racist and hateful ideas, words or images have no place in our publications, much less our society,” editors from the Times wrote.
“We apologize to Republican primary presidential candidate Vivek Ramaswamy, the Indian American community and our readers for publishing the offensive material in the Quad-City Times and Dispatch-Argus,” they said.
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