For 19 years, “Dobby” the gorilla — a statue inside a climbing cage — was a beloved attraction at the Community Park playground in Corsicana, TX. Until a group of 45 citizens went bananas. They demanded City Hall remove the statue because, according to cbsLocal.com, Dobby was “racially insensitive.” I kid you not. In a letter to The Corsicana Daily Sun, a resident complained, “The gorilla is a black ape confined in a [sic] unbreakable cage … it could be thought of as a metaphor for the institution of slavery.” Corsicana Mayor Don Denbow acquiesced. “[W]e have an obligation to listen to all our citizens, to determine what is offensive and not, especially in public places.” Poof! No more gorillas in his midst.
But after Dobby was banished, other citizens weighed in. Over a thousand devoted fans set up a makeshift memorial, with balloons and flowers, demanding Dobby’s return. The mayor beat a hasty retreat. Dobby was brought back, this time cageless, and painted a non-offensive light gray. “To match the monochromatic colors,” as The Daily Sun reported, of the nearby elephant statue. Because heaven forbid animal statues come in different shades. It might be insensitive.
From Limbaugh Letter May 2018