Michelle Obama 'ape in heels' post causes outrage

The controversial post that began with a non-profit group owner, sucked in a local mayor of a small town in the US state of West Virginia before rapidly spreading across the US and the world. PHOTO: COURTESY

A racist Facebook post about Michelle Obama has caused an uproar in the US.

The controversial post that began with a non-profit group owner, sucked in a local mayor of a small town in the US state of West Virginia before rapidly spreading across the US and the world.

Pamela Ramsey Taylor, who runs a local non-profit group in Clay County, first posted on Facebook referring to the first lady as an “ape”.

“It will be refreshing to have a classy, beautiful, dignified first lady in the White House. I’m tired of seeing ape in heels,” she posted.

Then the local mayor Beverly Whaling responded:”Just made my day Pam.”

Ms Whaling is mayor of the town of Clay, which has a population of just 491.

Clay County itself has no African-Americans, and more than 98 per cent of its 9,000 residents are white.

Despite its small population, the controversial Facebook post rapidly spread across the US and international media outlets.

A petition calling for both women to be sacked has collected more than 85,000 signatures.

The Washington Post and New York Daily News reported that Ms Taylor was removed from her position on Monday.

She told local news outlet WSAZ, which first carried the story, that she acknowledged her Facebook post could be “interpreted as racist, but in no way was intended to be”, and that she was expressing a personal opinion on attractiveness, not the colour of a person’s skin.

She told the news station she was considering legal action for slander against unnamed individuals.

The Clay County Development group, of which Ms Taylor is the director, is partly funded through state and federal grants, and provides services to elderly and low-income residents.

In a statement to The Washington Post, Mayor Whaling said: “My comment was not intended to be racist at all” and apologised for the comment “getting out of hand”.

“I was referring to my day being made for change in the White House! I am truly sorry for any hard feeling this may have caused! Those who know me know that I’m not of any way racist!” she said.

Owens Brown, director of the National Association for the Advancement of Coloured People West Virginia chapter, said it was “unfortunate that people still have these racist undertones”.

“Unfortunately, this is a reality that we are dealing with in America today. There’s no place for these types of attitudes in our state.”

West Virginia Democratic Party Chairwoman Belinda Biafore issued an apology to Michelle Obama “on behalf of my fellow Mountaineers”, referring to a nickname for inhabitants of the state.

“West Virginia truly is better than this. These radical, hateful, and racist ideals are exactly what we at the West Virginia Democratic Party will continue to fight against,” she said in a statement.

The state voted for the Republican candidate, Donald Trump in last week’s presidential elections, with 68.7 per cent of the vote.