| ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
The Missouri State Fair on Monday imposed a lifetime ban on a rodeo clown whose depiction1 of President Barack Obama getting charged by a bull was widely criticized by Democratic and Republican officials alike.
据美国媒体8月13日报道,美国一名小丑因在密苏里州博览会上表演时扮成总统奥巴马引来麻烦,今后他将再也不能参加该博览会或在博览会上表演。
This photo provided by Jameson Hsieh shows a clown wearing a mask intended to look like President Obama at the Missouri State Fair. The rodeo(竞技者) clown won't be allowed to participate or perform at the fair again. Fair officials say they're also reviewing whether to take any action against the Missouri Rodeo Cowboy Association, the contractor2 responsible for Saturday's event.
The entertainment during the bull riding contest featured a clown wearing a mask of Obama with an upside down broomstick attached to his backside. Spectators were asked if they wanted to see "Obama run down by a bull." Many in the audience responded enthusiastically.
Numerous Missouri officials denounced(谴责,揭发) the act after video and photos were posted online. Some Democratic Missouri lawmakers suggested Monday that there should be financial consequences for the fair.
The fair said in a written statement announcing the clown's ban that he had engaged in an "unconscionable stunt3" that was "inappropriate and not in keeping with the Fair's standards." The fair's press release did not identify the clown.
At least one person defended him. David Berry, a Missouri Rodeo Cowboy Association member who was at Saturday's event, described the clown as a friend and said there was nothing offensive or unusual about his actions. Berry said the Obama character was meant to look like a dummy4 and that rodeo clowns have long performed such acts, often imitating sitting presidents.
"The joke is not that it was the president," Berry said. "They drag out this person dressed like a dummy and all of the sudden this dummy just takes off running. That's what's funny."
But other rodeo professionals said the Missouri fair stunt appeared to go too far.
"It's not unheard of for a rodeo clown, depending on how he reads his audience, to play politics a little bit," said Jim Bainbridge, the senior public relations coordinator5 at the Professional Rodeo Cowboys Association, based in Colorado Springs, Colo. "But this crossed a line. Clearly, when you're suggesting that the president should be injured, it kind of gets to a level of hostility6 that is inappropriate."
Perry Beam, an attendee who posted a photo of the event on Facebook, has said it had the feeling of Ku Klux Klan rally. He said that, at one point, another clown ran up to the one wearing the Obama mask and played with the lips on the mask.
The rodeo's announcer - whom some media initially7 identified as making the comments about Obama - sought Monday to distance himself from the clown's actions.
Announcer Mark Ficken said through an attorney that the clown was wearing a live microphone and had given the announcer no advance notice about the skit8. Ficken is president of the Missouri Rodeo Cowboy Association and also is superintendent9 of the Boonville School District.
"He was as surprised as anyone with the appearance of an Obama-masked rodeo clown," said Ficken's attorney, Albert Watkins of St. Louis.
Watkins said Ficken's only comment during the event was to say, "Watch out for that bull Obama!" Watkins said that was meant as a warning for the clown's safety.
Fair Marketing10 Director Tammie Nichols said the rodeo clown was hired by Missouri Rodeo Cowboy Association and that fair officials did not know he was going to mock Obama.
"We've worked with this company for many, many, many years. We have a longstanding history with them and never had any trouble," Nichols said.
The association did not respond to an email request for an interview Monday and had removed the names of its officers from its website. A statement on the site said the association's directors are "dealing11 with the situation firmly and quickly as this type of behavior will not be tolerated. "
Most of the Missouri State Fair's roughly $4.5 million budget comes from fees charged to attendees and vendors12, but it receives about $558,000 from tax revenues, according to the state budget office.
Missouri House Democrats13 have suggested the Republican-led chamber14 should form a special committee to investigate the incident and determine whether to continue providing tax dollars to the fair.
State Rep. Steve Webb, chairman of the Missouri Legislative15 Black Caucus16, said Democratic Gov. Jay Nixon should cancel the governor's annual ham breakfast scheduled for Thursday at the fairgrounds. But Nixon spokesman Scott Holste said the governor did not plan to cancel the breakfast because of the "deplorable actions that took place during this one event."
点击收听单词发音
|
||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
上一篇:英议员建议出租司机对衣着暴露女性降低收费 下一篇:马尼拉女子怀疑丈夫不忠 将其阉割 |
- 发表评论
-
- 最新评论 进入详细评论页>>