Don Christy is a self-described “patriot” and took it upon himself to join the 4th of July parade of vehicles in the Sheridan, Indiana. Wearing an orange prison jumpsuit and a blonde wig, Christy shocked parade-goers with a doll meant to look like President Obama in a toilet with the words “Lying-African” underneath. From the IndyStar:
"I'm not a Democrat. I'm not a Republican," Christy said. "I'm a patriot."
Christy said he is tired of political correctness and was just trying to be funny. The display was not intended to be racist, he said. Christy agreed that others have a right to be offended, just as he has the right to express his views.
"I apologize to anyone I offended, which would be a total liberal. I have my right to say things," Christy said. "Isn't that what the Fourth of July's about? Freedom.”
As noted by the large Trump signs on top of the golf car, Christy is a big fan of the Republican presidential nominee Donald Trump. He’s just tired of all this gosh-darned political correctness these days! More from Fox59:
“What is racist about it? What was racist? He (Obama) is an African, right?” said Christy.
The Sheridan Lions Club organizes the parade. Residents wishing to participate in the parade are required to submit an entry form, and the Lions Club approves and organizes the entries.
Christy says he didn’t formally submit an entry. He says he just lined up with other floats at the start of the parade route and organizers allowed him to proceed. He says he’s done this in years past, and if the Lions Club didn’t want him in the parade, they could have asked him to leave.
We reached out to Lions Clubs International, and they released this statement, “We are a non-political organization. Anything that would be found to be offensive should not be on anything affiliated with Lions Clubs.”
Christy makes a good point, why didn’t anyone from the Sheridan Lions Club prevent him from going down the parade route?
Sheridan Police Chief Robert Shock told the IndyStar he’d had no complaints. He must not be on social media, where the image quickly made the rounds.