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West Virginia Mayor Beverly Whaling Resigns Over Michelle Obama ‘Ape’ Facebook Post

By Tara Dodrill
Published on: 01:49 PST, Nov 16, 2016

West Virginia Mayor Beverly Whaling resigned amid backlash over her response to a Michelle Obama comment shared on Facebook. The Clay Town Council accepted Whaling’s resignation Tuesday after an official meeting of local government officials.

Clay County Development Corporation Director Pamela Ramsey Taylor posted her excitement after Donald Trump won the 2016 presidential election. She then added, “It will be refreshing to have a classy, beautiful, dignified First Lady in the White House. I’m tired of seeing an ape in heels.”

West Virginia Mayor Beverly Whaling responded: “Just made my day Pam.” The typed words ultimately got Whaling run out of office.

The Clay Town Council plans to quickly find a replacement for the West Virginia mayor, Fox News reports. Beverly Whaling still had three years left on her term.

Jason Hubbard, a member of the town council, condemned the Michelle Obama post made by the West Virginia mayor as “horrific.” He also said, “racial intolerance isn’t what this community is about.”

Hubbard apologized to Michelle Obama and anyone who was offended by the Facebook comments, on behalf of the town of Clay, MSN reports. The city is located about 50 miles east of Charleston.

“This community is a helpful, hopeful, empathetic and God-loving community,” Jason Hubbard added. “Please don’t judge the entire community for one or two individual acts.”

During an interview about the Michelle Obama “ape” comments on Facebook, Clay County Development Corporation Director Pamela Ramsey Taylor said she was put on administrative leave from her position.

The Clay County Development Corporation in a non-profit organization. It provides services to both the poor and elderly in Clay County. The corporation reportedly garners funding via local fees as well as state and federal grants. It is not officially affiliated with the town of Clay.

Now former Mayor Beverly Whaling penned an apology which was given to the media. In the note, Whaling said the comment about the First Lady was not intended to be racist.

“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 in any way racist,” Whaling said.

After the Michelle Obama “ape” Facebook post and comment by the West Virginia mayor went viral, it was picked up by area television stations. Almost immediately, calls for both Pamela Ramsey Taylor and Beverly Whaling to resign were uttered. Facebook pages for both Clay women are not currently visible on the social media platform.

NAACP West Virginia Chapter Director Owens Brown is among those calling for both Taylor and Whaling to lose their jobs.

“I feel it’s so unfortunate that people still have these racist undertones,” Brown said. “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.”

Clay Town Council member Joyce Gibson said the viral Michelle Obama post prompted the small town’s voicemail system to quickly get overloaded with calls by people angry over the Facebook comments. She urged concerned individuals to come see the town and spend a day with the people before judging what the community is all about.

The non-partisan Clay Town Council is comprised of five members, a mayor, and the town recorder.

Approximately 77 percent of Clay County residents voted for Donald Trump. President Barack Obama earned about 31 percent of the vote in the county during the 2012 election. African-Americans comprise about four percent of the population in West Virginia. About 1.8 million people live in the state.

[Featured Image by Evan El-Amin/Shutterstock]

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