A photographer working for the National Basketball League got the boot after he posted a sexist meme about vice presidential candidate Senator Kamala Harris .
Photographer Bill Baptist was ejected from the NBA’s competition “bubble” in Orlando for sharing an image on his Facebook page of a mock logo for the new Democratic presidential ticket. It read: “Joe and the Hoe,” apparently referring to Joe Biden and Harris.
WNBA Hall-of-Famer and former Houston Comet Sheryl Swoopes shared a screenshot of the slur on her Facebook page and demanded that Baptist be fired. She knew Baptist from when he covered the Comets and the Houston Rockets:
An NBA spokesman told CNN that Baptist was an independent contractor, and his services were “no longer being used in Orlando .”
Baptist later apologised and removed the post. He called it a “horrible mistake,” and said it “does not reflect my personal view at all.”
“I deeply regret posting on my Facebook page a phrase that I saw and copied from others as a sample of some people’s reaction to Biden’s selection of Senator Harris as his choice for VP,” Baptist said in a statement to KRPC Channel 2 in Houston.
“The phrase I posted does not reflect my personal views at all,” he added. “I should not have been so insensitive to post the statements by others. I sincerely apologize to all of those who have rightfully been offended.”