Many Republicans and conservatives do not seem to know, or appear to not have the faintest clue, as to what is a racially insulting and dehumanizing image. At least they feign ignorance.
It is the same ignorance that was used to claim that there was nothing wrong with usage of the "Black Sambo" or "Chinaman" images of a generation ago. It is the same ignorance that was used to claim there was nothing wrong with using a Mexican bandit - the "Frito Bandito" - to sell Frito Lay's corn chips. And then came the 1960s.
These people that feign ignorance nowadays always seem to work for political campaigns. Unless the topic is sports mascots. For example, the 1960s bypassed the Washington Redskins and Chief Wahoo of the Cleveland Indians. The dehumanization of American Indians, particularly in the sports universe, has been normalized.
That aside, the rest of these operatives seem to work on political campaigns. But they are not ignorant; they know precisely how to tap into deep-seeded fears and how to stir up profound hate.
http://www.commondreams.org/view/2010/11/01-5