March 21, 2012
RALEIGH — A freelance writer has ended her association with the John Locke Foundation’s Meck Deck blog today in the wake of criticism over an offensive illustration linked to one of her blog entries earlier this week.
Tara Servatius informed the Locke Foundation this morning that she wished to resign from her freelance writing for the blog, which focuses primarily on the Charlotte region.
The item posted Monday afternoon focused on President Obama’s opposition to the marriage amendment on North Carolina’s May primary ballot. The initial post included an image combining the president’s face with the image of a person wearing chains and high-heeled boots and sitting next to a bucket of fried chicken.
“I’m embarrassed and angered today,” said JLF President John Hood. “The illustration associated with this blog entry was offensive and utterly inappropriate for our blog or anyone else’s. A reader brought it to my attention Wednesday. I had it removed immediately, but the damage was done. I’m sorry I didn’t see it earlier, and I’m deeply sorry it was on our website for any length of time.”
“The political discourse in our state and nation has grown increasingly coarse, unnecessarily personal, and destructively vitriolic,” Hood added. “This is the kind of episode that can only make the situation worse. We should be able to disagree about controversial issues without it coming to this.”
Hood agreed with Servatius’ decision. “Given the severity of the situation, this is the best outcome for all concerned.”