Obama Delegate Quits After Campaign Finds Remarks to Neighbor Kids to be ‘Unacceptable’
Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski (Photo Courtesy of: Daily Herald)
A Barack Obama supporter has given up her role as a pledged delegate after the campaign found “unacceptable” her description of her neighbor’s children as “monkeys,” which she says she called them because they were climbing in trees.
Linda Ramirez-Sliwinski, an a Hispanic trustee for the Village of Carpentersville, Ill., was accused of racism following the interaction with her African-American neighbors.
“Given the incident, she is stepping down and will be replaced as delegate,” Ben Labolt, a spokesman for the Obama campaign told FOXNews.com, calling Sliwinski’s remarks “unacceptable.”
The campaign discussed the incident with Ramirez-Sliwinski, who decided to step aside as a delegate to the Democratic National Convention in August, Labolt said.
Police issued a $75 citation for disorderly conduct on Saturday to Ramirez-Sliwinski , Carpentersville Police Cmdr. Michael Kilbourne told FOXNews.com.
“This is like a parking ticket,” Kilbourne said. “She was not arrested, she was not fingerprinted.”
Police officers were dispatched to Sparrow Road for a neighbor dispute, Kilbourne said.
Ramirez-Sliwinski told the kids to stop playing in her next-door neighbor’s tree because she was worried they would fall out of the tree and hurt themselves, Kilbourne said.
Dametta Stewart, a parent of one of the kids, alleges that Ramirez-Sliwinski came outside and told the kids to “quit playing in the tree like monkeys,” according to the police report. Stewart told police she was upset and felt the comment was racist since her children are African-American, Kilbourne said.
Ramirez-Sliwinski told officers that she didn’t believe the comment was racist and that she calls her own grandkids monkeys.
Ramirez-Sliwinski told the local Daily Herald, based in Arlington Heights, Ill., that her remarks were not racist despite ill feelings between the neighbors.
“Technically, I don’t consider it a mistake because that’s not what I meant,” Ramirez-Sliwinski told the newspaper. “They’re children. They’re climbing in a tree. What would you think?”
Ramirez-Sliwinski said she likely won’t run for re-election as a trustee after her term expires in April 2009.
The delegate should not have left the Obama campaign. the “monkey” comment was innocent. This has gone too far. It’s crazy that someone has to resign due to an innocent comment. Kids climbing trees are like monkeys….no matter what color.
thanks.
Come on… how PC can you get?
Ramirez-Sliwinski’s neighbors are really reaching for something to resent in her comment about children climbing like monkeys in trees. I am beginning to realize anger is the goal and not the result of almost all interchange between the races.
This is totally ridiculous! Calling children in trees “monkeys” is not racially motivated in any way. I was called a monkey when I was a child climbing in trees, on furniture, etc. We all call children climbing in trees monkeys, regardless of skin color. Their race has no bearing whatsoever. This is just another example of someone being overly sensitive about something of absolutely no significance. I echo the sentiments of another post asking why this woman was asked to leave the campaign when Rev. Wright spews hateful, racist, acrimonious rhetoric.
i did not know that calling climbing children monkeys was racist. is this the “M” word now?where will it end? what a crock!
This woman was not being racist. When will it all end? It sounds like this neighbor needs to get a life. Does this neighbor go around waiting for people to make comments that she can call offensive? OMG, how ridiculous!
I think the parent of the children are way to sensitive. I have heard this said by many parents describing their children antics. I think the ticket should be thrown out. Blacks just want to be catered to and get a free ride. It’s time to say enough already. This is just a taste of what it will be having Obama as president he will certainly make it worst. He will not unite the country he will rip it apart.
This story is just another example of blacks jumping on any little situation to scream, “racism”. Maybe the day will come when their being so thin skinned and there is that abscence of that chip on their shoulders, we can all relax and not take everything as an insult to our race. You media people need to stop exacerbating this behavior by your constant dwelling on the negative because of candidate bias. It really doesn’t sway my mind as to the candidate of choice. We all have the right to choose (without intimidation from pundits and media). As we step into that voting booth and pull that curtain - it’s our power - not yours or anyone elses. Back off and give the American people their right to choose. We aren’t brainless twits that need your so-called guidance to make the right decisions according to our beliefs. I’ve watched this process from day one and am so disgiusted by the media coverage and bias it makes me sick. As quoted in Vanity Fair article, “if Hillary was a man this contest would have been decided a long time ago. Obama would have been out - period! Hey you guys, are you all really so afraid you have to say those two words that leave you quivering in your boots; send chills up your spines and choking on those words - “Madam President”.??????? Shame on all of you!
Where does this all end?
It is amazing that a party which prides itself on protecting freedom of speech (for all except Christians that is) would make an issue of this not-so-well-thought-out remark. It is nonsensical, at best. Political correctness has run amok in this country. While, as a Christian, I do not support racism in any form whatever, I DO support reasoned thinking. THINK. Why do ever-increasing numbers in the country I so love refuse to THINK?
OKAY. Let me see if I understand. She was fined $75 for a comment that may/may not be “racially offensive”
12,000 people sit in a church on the South side of Chicago and listen to a minister, Rev. Jeremiah Wright that is A RACIST BIGOT–whose views are not open to interpretation–HOW MUCH IS HE FINED?
This woman then got dropped as a delegate for Obama because of this incident.
However, Rev. James Meeks is a delegate for Obama that has stated his hatred of whites, gays and Jews in unambiguous language—
OBAMA HAS NOT DROPPED HIM!!!
WHY NOT????