I heard this story on Neal Boortz's show on the way in this morning, and couldn't believe it. Not only that, The Talkmaster said that you could take a look at the original story if you didn't believe him (and he wouldn't be surprised if you didn't).

Unfortunately, the newspaper in question, the Columbus (GA) Ledger-Enquirer, demands you pay a buck or three for stories more than a week old. But thanks to the wonders of modern technology (and Google's cache), we've got the entire original story from the Columbus paper, and lo and behold if'n it ain't completely true!

On January 15, there was a Civil Rights march in commemoration of Martin Luther King's birthday. As you would expect, there were members of the local constabulary present to maintain the decorum of the crowds -- not unlike any other march or parade.

Enter one unidentified black woman who came to town for the march. She was shocked and appalled at what she found, and wrote a scathing letter to the mayor about the conduct of one particular police officer.

Did the officer say anything untoward? Nope. Didn't utter a word.

Did he brutalize anyone? Nope. Didn't touch a soul.

Not only that, Columbus Mayor Bob Poydasheff received glowing remarks about the helpfulness of the local constabulary during the march.

So what, pray tell, did this member of Columbus' Finest do to tick off the letter-writer?

He ate a banana.

And no, before you go there, he wasn't doing an imitation of the Spice Channel or the Playboy Channel, he was eating the banana the way anyone would: Peel it, take a bite, chew, swallow. Lather, rinse and repeat.

So what ticked her off about a banana-eating cop?

Well, it seems that in the context of the march, she took the officer's banana eating to imply an analogous racial slur relating black people to apes.

Such a comparison would not be uncommon in the parlance of racist propaganda, particularly in the old days. But these days that kind of talk is pretty rare -- and pretty obvious, too, when someone really means it.

So as racial slurs go, simply eating a banana now has to be considered rather subtle, for this particular area.

So the mayor reported back to the letter-writer that simple fact. And then he did something that I wouldn't have done to someone as idiotic as that.

He apologized.

The screeching lunatic demanded the apology in writing. So the mayor did.

Dated Jan. 22, it says: "As I said in our telephone conversation, I am sorry you found Columbus police officers eating bananas on the street when you arrived in Columbus for the protest. Let me assure you there was no intent to offend. The officers needed some nutrition after standing long hours on the street and they particularly needed the potassium available in bananas and some other fruits."

Later the mayor writes: "There was no thought of insulting or offending anyone and perhaps this was thoughtless on our part. In any case, let me offer my sincere apology for anything our officers may have done that gave offense to you or anyone else."

No one knows. She hasn't seen fit to contact anyone back who has inquired.

But between you, me and the gatepost? Go ahead. Enjoy your banana. And if you catch me at home on the right day, I might even treat you to some bananas from our fruit basket. Or maybe even, at the risk of earning her ire, eat one myself.

Posted by: mhking at 08:17 AM | Comments (32) | Add Comment
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