The consequences were not long in coming for Scott Adams. Many American newspapers have decided to cease their collaboration with the creator of the famous comic strip Dilbert after the publication, on Wednesday February 22, of a video in which the person concerned describes the black population as a “hate group”.

Scott Adams rose to fame in the 1990s with his comic strip Dilbert, a very sour chronicle of the world of work. His comments on social issues are attracting more and more criticism.

On his YouTube show, he referred to a recent Rasmussen Reports poll on Wednesday showing that a slim majority of black people surveyed agreed that “it’s OK to be white.” “It’s a hate group and I want nothing to do with it,” he said, also expressing disbelief at the title of the poll in question. “If half of black people, according to this poll, think it’s not OK to be white, then it’s a hate group,” the author argues. “The way things are right now, the best advice I could give white people is to get the hell away from black people,” he adds.

Mr. Adams explains that until now, he had helped the American black community financially, and that he identified as black himself, wanting to be part of “the winning team” and the team he supported . “But it turns out that almost half of this team don’t think it’s OK for me to be white,” he continued. “I identify as white again because I don’t want to be a member of a hate group,” the satirist concluded.

Statements “promoting segregation”

The USA TODAY Network, which operates hundreds of newspapers across the United States, announced on Friday that it “no longer publishes the Dilbert comic book due to recent discriminatory comments by its creator.”

Chris Quinn, editor of the Cleveland, Ohio, daily The Plain Dealer, said Friday that it “wasn’t difficult” for his paper to decide to drop the comic. “We do not welcome those who advocate racism,” he added.

The Washington Post announced on Saturday that the comic would no longer appear in its pages, although it was too late to prevent it from appearing in its weekend editions. “In light of recent statements by Scott Adams promoting segregation, The Washington Post has ceased publication of the Dilbert comic strip,” a spokesperson for the newspaper said.