Former vice presidential candidate and Facebook fan Sarah Palin has taken to the social networking site again, this time in response to Sunday’s “Family Guy” episode that appeared to mock her developmentally disabled son Trig.
Palin went on Facebook just before 1 a.m. this morning calling out “Fox Hollywood” as a “disappointment” (Palin was recently hired as a paid contributor for Fox News).
The animated show, which aired Sunday night, included a scene where Chris Griffin goes on a date with a domineering girl with Down Syndrome, who says her dad is an accountant and “my mom is the former governor of Alaska.”
The post starts with a message from Sarah Palin, and includes a message from her daughter, Bristol (in italics):
People are asking me to comment on yesterday’s Fox show that felt like another kick in the gut. Bristol was one who asked what I thought of the show that mocked her baby brother, Trig (and/or others with special needs), in an episode yesterday. Instead of answering, I asked her what she thought. Here is her conscientious reply, which is a much more restrained and gracious statement than I want to make about an issue that begs the question, “when is enough, enough?”:
“When you’re the son or daughter of a public figure, you have to develop thick skin. My siblings and I all have that, but insults directed at our youngest brother hurt too much for us to remain silent. People with special needs face challenges that many of us will never confront, and yet they are some of the kindest and most loving people you’ll ever meet. Their lives are difficult enough as it is, so why would anyone want to make their lives more difficult by mocking them? As a culture, shouldn’t we be more compassionate to innocent people – especially those who are less fortunate? Shouldn’t we be willing to say that some things just are not funny? Are there any limits to what some people will do or say in regards to my little brother or others in the special needs community? If the writers of a particularly pathetic cartoon show thought they were being clever in mocking my brother and my family yesterday, they failed. All they proved is that they’re heartless jerks. – Bristol Palin”
– Sarah Palin
The cartoon aired just days after Palin slammed White House chief of staff Rahm Emanuel and radio talk host Rush Limbaugh for using the word “retard.”