A selectman in Hampton, New Hampshire, is under fire for posting what critics are calling a racist and transphobic meme on social media.
According to Seacoastonline, Selectman Regina Barnes last week posted a meme on the “Friends of Regina Barnes” Facebook page targeting vice presidential candidate Kamala Harris and reality television star Caitlyn Jenner.
The meme read: “If you can pretend Bruce Jenner is a woman & Kamala Harris is black, then you can definitely pretend I am wearing a mask,” the news website reported.
Jenner, 70, the Olympic gold medalist formerly known as Bruce, revealed in 2015 that she is transgender and has become a woman. Harris for years has identified herself as both Black and Indian American.
Barnes, a vocal opponent of mask mandates, said she was not racist or transphobic and that the post was meant as a joke, Seacoastonline said. Critics, however, are calling for her resignation.
Local news
The Associated Press contributed to this report
