GOP Chairman Bo French has put himself in the crossfire once again after posting racist comments on X and indirectly referring to the African American community as “Chimps.” French is an ignorant, prejudiced man who does not care about how his comments degrade American citizens.
In a post on X, French said, “All I can say is avoid city centers, stay strapped, carry spare mags, and have a plan to keep your family safe. When the hoards are chimping out, everyone is at risk.” In another post, he claimed Nov. 1 to be “Chimp Out Day” due to the pause of the Supplemental Nutrition Assistance Program.
“Chimp” is associated with primates and has traditionally been used as a racial slur towards African Americans since the early 1900s. It began at a time when colonizers would lock up African slaves in zoos alongside animals. They cast an image that Africans are less than human — that they are animals and should be treated as such. French’s use of the term “chimp” is a media assault on African Americans.
His comments received serious backlash from the public. One user on Facebook proclaimed that French’s remarks were racist and targeted Black Americans. French latter responded with a post saying, “It just means freak out,” if this were the case, French would have said freak out, hulk out, riot or mob. Words have meaning, and those of French exemplify his bigotry. He called not just SNAP users but African Americans comprising the U.S. population “chimps,” and refused to acknowledge it.
This is not French’s first offence; he has a history of displaying discriminatory behavior online. In the months leading to the 2024 presidential election, he commented on a male voter advertisement, saying, “This is the gayest ad in history,” and that he could “Guarantee every one of these ‘dudes’ is a homo. There is literally nothing manly about any of them.”
More recently, he put up a poll in response to Zohran Mamdani winning the Democratic primary in the New York City mayoral election, asking, “Who is a bigger threat to America?” with the options being “Jews” and “Muslims.” French is callous, numb to how his words impact the communities he targets.
French resigned from his position as GOP Chairman on Nov. 12 through an X post. This was a result of the reaction to his hate speech and Texas Lieutenant Governor Dan Patrick’s call for French’s resignation. French repeatedly spews hateful rhetoric online, targeting communities of different races, religions and sexual orientations. Every post brought a bigger horde to his door. Every comment fueled the flame that was eventually his undoing. French, observing his rap sheet of online prejudice, never learned from it.
French’s position of power leads him to believe that he can say anything that comes to mind without consequence. These were not leaked messages he sent to a coworker; these are widespread comments he posted for all to see. It is a pattern, one that targets the beliefs of people who do not look or think like him.
