Kentucky to probe use of ethnic caricatures in supervisor's e-mails

Valarie Honeycutt Spears | The Lexington Herald-Leader

State officials are investigating the alleged use of offensive ethnic caricatures on e-mail messages a state social services supervisor sent, according to a spokeswoman for the Cabinet for Health and Family Services.

The cabinet has ordered Gary Haner to stop using the images, said the spokeswoman, Vikki Franklin, on Tuesday.

Haner declined to comment on the investigation, Franklin said.

Haner is one of five regional supervisors who oversee social workers in charge of local offices in the cabinet's Southern Bluegrass Region, which includes Fayette, Madison, Powell, Jessamine, Clark, Mercer, Boyle, Lincoln, Estill and Garrard counties.

A complaint about the images was filed with the cabinet in December.

The images are caricatures that depict various ethnic stereotypes, including dark-skinned men and women and one Chinese woman.

The caricatures have designations attached to them, such as "Baby Mama," "Chula" and "China Doll."

To read the complete article, visit www.kentucky.com.

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