US Tennis star Serena Williams’ recent loss in the US Open finals against Japan’s Naomi Osaka continues to be talked about, rather, for another reason. Her altercations with umpire Carlos Ramos cost her a fine of over $17,000 followed by severe criticism for her on-ground behavior.
Now, a controversial cartoon of Williams has been reprinted by an Australian newspaper. They had earlier published the caricature of her lips exaggerated, stomping on her tennis racket. The image met with widespread hatred and accusations of racism against the illustrator Mark Knight.
The cartoonist and the newspaper denied the allegations and instead the paper reprinted the cartoon on Wednesday on the front page with the headline “WELCOME TO PC WORLD.” In an editorial, the paper wrote, "if the self-appointed censors of Mark Knight get their way on his Serena Williams cartoon, our new politically correct life will be very dull indeed".
The editor of the paper denied any sort of racism or sexism involved. The caricature was published alongside cartoons of US President Donald Trump and North Korean Leader Kim Jong-un. Mark Knight, the illustrator had to suspend his Twitter account due to death threats against his family.
Prajakta Ajgaonkar September 12 2018, 7.46 pm
