Dilbert Creator Takes to Twitter After Comic Dropped Over Race Comments

Scott Adams, the creator of the Dilbert comic strip, is defending himself on Twitter after facing a backlash of cancellations for describing Black people as members of "a hate group."

The outrage has led to Dilbert, the long-running comic poking fun at office culture, being dropped by hundreds of newspapers across the U.S.

It came after Adams, on a YouTube livestream on Wednesday, effectively promoted segregation by saying white people should "get the hell away from" Black people.

He referenced a Rasmussen poll that asked whether people agreed with the statement "It's OK to be white." The slogan was popularized in 2017 as a trolling campaign by 4chan members that was then promoted by white supremacists, according to the Anti-Defamation League.

Adams, who is white, noted that 26 percent of Black respondents disagreed and others weren't sure.

"If nearly half of all Blacks are not okay with White people... that's a hate group," he said. "I don't want to have anything to do with them. And I would say, based on the current way things are going, the best advice I would give to white people is to get the hell away from Black people."

Adams has doubled down on his comments on Twitter, and suggested that the cancellation of Dilbert is a sign that free speech is under assault. "Has anyone checked the price of free speech lately? It's worse than eggs," he wrote in a tweet on Saturday.

In another tweet, Adams said he had been making two points: to "treat everyone as an individual" and to "avoid any group that doesn't respect you." He added: "Does anyone think this is bad advice?"

He also posted several polls, including one that asked whether people would advise a young person going to prison to "act like a racist or mingle with all the inmates and make friends."

Several major publications denounced Adams and said they would stop providing a platform for his work.

"In light of Scott Adams' recent statements promoting segregation, The Washington Post has ceased publication of the Dilbert comic strip," a spokesperson said on Saturday.

The Los Angeles Times cited Adams' "racist comments" in a statement on Saturday that said Dilbert will be discontinued effective Monday in most editions.

And the USA Today Network, which runs more than 300 newspapers, tweeted on Friday that it will stop publishing Dilbert "due to recent discriminatory comments by its creator."

Adams has previously faced criticism for his comments, including for warning that Republicans would "be hunted" if Joe Biden became president and for suggesting that families could be forced to "kill" young men unless society adopts his "solution" to the "danger" they pose to themselves or others.

Newsweek has contacted Andrews McMeel Syndication, which distributes Dilbert, for comment. Adams couldn't immediately be reached.