However, it is still political satire of a person who has repeatedly shown himself to be a national disgrace. All three are political leaders who have brought shame upon themselves or their office. The only difference is that Marion Barry is black. As a result, he seemingly is beyond reproach and criticism. Any satirizing of him will be met instantaneously with the charge of racism.
Racism is modern society s scarlet letter.
Worse, it is nearly impossible to remove. Conversely, Al Franken can write a book called Rush Limbaugh is a Big Fat Idiot and be lauded in the press. This is not commented on since most of the media disagrees with Limbaugh s politics, anyway. Perhaps what bothered me most about the reaction to the paper was that the person who emailed me has known me for three years. Ironically, in the same issue I wrote a book review of Zadie Smith s White Teeth , which is a look at modern, multicultural Britain.