Vice chair of Young Republicans caught laughing at ‘coon’ joke
By Raw Story
Published: July 6, 2009
http://rawstory.com/08/news/2009/07/06/vice-chairman-of-young-republicans-coon-joke/The Vice Chair of the Young Republicans is in political hot water after being caught laughing — and seemingly endorsing — a racist “coon” joke on her Facebook page.
Audra Shay, Vice Chair of the Young Republicans, replied to a comment on her Facebook page which declared the “need to take this country back from all of these mad coons” with “You tell em Eric! lol.”
The remark was caught by John Avlon at The Daily Beast. A screenshot of the Facebook comment can be seen here. Avlon says that Shay is the most likely candidate to be elected chair of the Young Republican group.
“On Wednesday, Shay—a 38-year-old Army veteran, mother, and event planner from Louisiana who has been endorsed by her governor, Bobby Jindal—was holding court on her Facebook page, initiating a political conversation by posting that ‘WalMart just signed a death warrant’ by ‘endorsing Obama’s healthcare plan,’” Avlon notes. “At 1:52, a friend named listed as Eric S. Piker, but whose personal page says his actual name is Eric Pike, wrote ‘It’s the government making us commies… can’t even smoke in my damn car… whats next they going to issue toilet paper once a month… tell us how to wipe our asses…’”
Piker then posted again. “Obama Bin Lauden
is the new terrorist,” he penned. “Muslim is on there side … need to take this country back from all of these mad coons… and illegals.”
In reply, Shay wrote: “You tell em Eric! lol.”
Shay says she was only responding to Pike’s earlier comment. “The eight-minute gap between the second post and her response strains the credibility of this defense,” Avlon writes. Shay’s original reference was to an announcement that Wal-Mart would back a Democrat-backed US healthcare bill that required employers to provide insurance for their employees.About Audra
http://yrrenewal.com/?page_id=2AUDRA SIGLER SHAY
Tested Leader, Proven Results
* Army Veteran
* Mother
* Small Business Owner
* Community Leader
* Young Republican Professional
* YR Chapter Chairman
* YR State Chairman
* Volunteer
* Campaign Operative
Audra is a tested leader ready and able to confront the issues that today’s Young Professionals face and take them head on. A true Republican leader at home in Louisiana and a respected Party operative across the country, Audra and the unified team of YRs look to lead the YRNF in a new direction, while renewing the principals our founding father fought for. Audra and Team Renewal will restore faith in our YRNF, revitalize the nations’ Young Republican Professionals as a force in today’s political climate and reinforce the Republican beliefs that bind us.
Audra Sigler was born in Fort Smith, Arkansas in 1971 to a banker and a grocer. She was raised in a Southern Baptist church and attended public elementary and secondary schools, where she excelled in track and cheerleading.