Activist defends use of racial term to describe sheriff
Community activist Robert Miranda is defending his use of a racially offensive term in a meme criticizing Milwaukee County Sheriff David A. Clarke Jr.
On the Facebook page for Milwaukee County Progressives, Miranda posted a picture of Clarke with this text: “Yo Sheriff Coonflake! Calling people ‘snowflake’ and jigaboo’ might land you a job with (Donald) Trump, You still a knee-grow to white nationalist.”
The meme had been removed from the Facebook page by Tuesday afternoon.
The post was intended as a response to Clarke’s own highly charged rhetoric over the past week. In a tweet, the sheriff referred to a black CNN commentator as “jigaboo” and posted a Facebook meme calling a Riverwest man “snowflake” and threatening him with physical harm. Miranda, owner of the Spanish Journal and the former executive director of Esperanza Unida, defended his Facebook post, emphasizing that he had not used the term “coon” but rather the neologism “coonflake.” He also said the rules for offensive language have changed under President Donald Trump.
“And I’m supposed to watch my language when this government official promotes violence and uses racist language, degrades black people and ignores the deaths of people in his jail? This man has to go!” said Miranda, who is leading the fight to have Milwaukee pay to replace lead water pipes in the city.
“You flower children out there wanting to make light of what this barbaric government official says need to wake up,” Miranda added.
Clarke did not respond to Miranda’s post or remarks.
Miranda emphasized that he is to receive an award this weekend at a fundraiser for the black nationalist Nation of Islam being held at the Wisconsin African-American Women’s Center.
“Anyone who wishes to say something about what I said can go to the event and present why I shouldn’t be given that recognition,” Miranda said.
In 2015, Miranda pleaded guilty to a misdemeanor count of obstructing a police officer. The judge stayed his sentence, noting he had no previous arrest record and has spent his adult life working on behalf of Milwaukee’s Latino community.