Condemnation For Vernon Township Republicans Over Controversial Domestic Violence Cartoon

WAUKEGAN, IL — The Vernon Township Republicans issued a public apology after publishing a political cartoon in their August newsletter that depicted a battered woman staying with her abuser for access to abortion, prompting criticism from across the political spectrum in Lake County.

In a statement, leaders of the local Republican organization called the publication of the cartoon a "lapse in judgment" and vowed to improve their editorial processes.

"Internal documents are often prepared in haste, without enough forethought, especially without intent for public consumption," it said. "We will improve our procedures moving forward."

Published by an anonymous right-wing cartoonist who goes by "SKS Cartoon," the cartoon that appeared in the local GOP group's since-deleted newsletter portrayed a bruised woman sitting on the floor, wearing a "Vote Blue" T-shirt.

Nearby, an anthropomorphized donkey with tattoos reading "War," "Open Border," "Cost of Living," "BLM" and "Crime" and holding a bottle of whiskey labeled "debt," says, "B***h, you ain't gonna leave me, right?," to which the woman responds, "As long as I can have abortions."

The cartoon was posted Aug. 1 with the caption, "Democrat women in a nutshell" and had been "liked" on Instagram more than 3,500 times in the two weeks that followed.

The Vernon Township Republicans the views expressed in its newsletter do not represent those of "any candidates," according to the statement.

"As we are all volunteers and not professional politicians, spin doctors, or media agents, our media does not go through the rigors of editing one may find in other places," it said.

In an attempt to make amends, the Vernon Township Republicans pledged to donate $250 to A Safe Place, a Lake County nonprofit that supports domestic violence victims.

Meanwhile, the Buffalo Grove-based GOP group also took the opportunity to criticize Lake County State’s Attorney Eric Rinehart, accusing him of negotiating lenient plea agreements with defendants in domestic battery cases.

"While Mr. Rinehart plays politics by making hay out of a poorly chosen political cartoon, he avoids being held accountable for his record of being soft on domestic violence as Lake County State's Attorney," it said.

"Cartoons don't kill people, but criminals given sweetheart probation deals by Eric Rinehart do," the group added.

Rinehart had responded to the cartoon by calling on all Republican candidates to denounce the "Trump-like" cartoon and defending his office's record in domestic violence cases.

“This is a stunning and disgusting moment for Lake County Republicans. Domestic Violence is no laughing matter," Rinehart said.

“As State’s Attorney, I’ve increased the number of domestic violence prosecutors and victim counselors, and the office is holding more domestic abusers in our jail than ever – without access to cash bail," he said. "In partnership with A Safe Place, we are leading the region with our federally-funded Human Trafficking Prosecution task force because we recognize the deep root causes of domestic violence and exploitation of others."

According to A Safe Place, the organization provided counseling services for 897 adult survivors and 395 child witnesses of domestic violence in 2020 — the last year for which it published an annual report.

It also offered legal advocacy to 2,179 victims of domestic violence, sexual assault and stalking in its 2020 fiscal year, the organization reported.

“There is no humor around domestic violence,” Judith Rosowicz, board president of A Safe Place, told the Chicago Sun-Times. “About 125,000 people were impacted by domestic violence in Lake County last year, it’s a real problem here."

The Zacharias Center for Sexual Abuse, which has offices in Gurnee and Skokie, also denounced the cartoon, with a spokesperson telling the Chicago Tribune it was "propaganda" that "makes light of the very serious situation."

Democratic Party officials at the township, county and congressional district level condemned the cartoon, as did Republican Party candidates on the ballot in Lake County this November election.

Mary Cole, Rinehart's Republican challenger in the upcoming November election and a former domestic violence survivor and victim's advocate herself, also denounced the cartoon.

"Domestic violence needs to be taken seriously and not reduced to political fodder," Cole told the Daily Herald.

And Jim Carris, Republican candidate in the 10th Congressional District, also criticized the cartoon, stating that it “trivializes a serious issue affecting many families in our community and is entirely in bad taste.”