After a tremendous backlash and many, many advertisers pulling their ads in protest, the website Wonkette has deleted an incredibly offensive “satire” by Jack Steuf who called Sarah Palin’s youngest child Trig (who has Down Syndrome) names like “retarded” in a mocking birthday message to the little boy.
Dana Loesch at Big Journalism has been keeping a running tally of all the companies that have taken down their ads in protest of the awful Wonkette article. At the time of my writing, these included Papa John’s Pizza, Huggies, Vanguard Group, Holland America Cruises, Nordstrom’s, Bob Evans Farms, Reliant Energy, DealSwarm, Coldwell Banker, J. Jill, Starkist, Starwood Hotels (and I’m sure others).
The writer has since apologized for it, as has Wonkette. But they both have a long history of doing this sort of thing, so we have to remain vigilant when kids (and pro-life choices) are mocked to score political points.
I’m very proud to see, however, how many organizations chose to have nothing to do with a website that allowed one of its writers to say such horrible things about an innocent little child.
This episode should also reminds us of the tragic fact that over 90% of children diagnosed with Down Syndrom are aborted! We’re lucky to have little Trig among us, even if not everyone sees that yet.