The creator of the Dilbert comic strip faced a backlash of cancellations Saturday while defending remarks describing people who are Black as members of 鈥渁 hate group鈥 from which white people should 鈥済et away.鈥
Various media publishers across the U.S. denounced the comments by Dilbert creator Scott Adams as racist, hateful and discriminatory while saying they would no longer provide a platform for his work.
Andrews McMeel Syndication, which distributes Dilbert, did not immediately respond Saturday to requests for comment. But Adams defended himself on social media against those whom he said "hate me and are canceling me.鈥
Dilbert is a long-running comic that pokes fun at office-place culture.
The backlash began following an episode this past week of the YouTube show, 鈥淩eal Coffee with Scott Adams.鈥 Among other topics, Adams referenced a Rasmussen Reports survey that had asked whether people agreed with the statement 鈥淚t's OK to be white."
Most agreed, but Adams noted that 26% of Black respondents disagreed and others weren't sure.
The Anti-Defamation League says the phrase was popularized in 2017 as a trolling campaign by members of the discussion forum 4chan but then began being used by some white supremacists.
Adams, who is white, repeatedly referred to people who are Black as members of a 鈥渉ate group鈥 or a 鈥渞acist hate group鈥 and said he would no longer 鈥渉elp Black Americans."
鈥淏ased on the current way things are going, the best advice I would give to white people is to get the hell away from Black people,鈥 Adams said on his Wednesday show.
In another episode of his online show Saturday, Adams said he had been making a point that 鈥渆veryone should be treated as an individual鈥 without discrimination.
"But you should also avoid any group that doesn鈥檛 respect you, even if there are people within the group who are fine,鈥 Adams said.
cited Adams' 鈥渞acist comments鈥 while announcing Saturday that Dilbert will be discontinued Monday in most editions and that its final run in the Sunday comics 鈥 which are printed in advance 鈥 will be March 12.
, which is part of Hearst Newspapers, said Saturday that it will drop the Dilbert comic strip, effective Monday, 鈥渂ecause of hateful and discriminatory public comments by its creator.鈥
tweeted Friday that it also will stop publishing Dilbert "due to recent discriminatory comments by its creator.鈥
and other publications that are part of Advance Local media also announced that they are dropping Dilbert.
鈥淭his is a decision based on the principles of this news organization and the community we serve,鈥 wrote Chris Quinn, editor of The Plain Dealer. 鈥漌e are not a home for those who espouse racism. We certainly do not want to provide them with financial support."
Christopher Kelly, vice president of content for , wrote that the news organization believes in 鈥渢he free and fair exchange of ideas.鈥
鈥淏ut when those ideas cross into hate speech, a line must be drawn,鈥 Kelly wrote.
