Before Election Day, an upstate New York mayor posted a status on his private Facebook page calling people who would vote for Democrats “retarded.” Fort Ann Mayor Denis Langlois wrote, “If anyone that I know vote [sic] for a Democrat on Tuesday you should sign yourself into the Mental Health unit at your local Hospital because you are retarded and need help, Vote Republican and ‘Keep America Great’!”
According to the The Post Star, a screenshot of Langlois’ Facebook post was sent to The Post Star by a Fort Ann resident.
Jay Ruderman, president of the Ruderman Family Foundation, which works to aid disability inclusion, stated, “Mayor Langlois’ statement is derogatory, inappropriate, and hurtful. We teach our children not to demean disability or any other difference, and we must hold our public figures to this same standard. Approximately twenty percent of Americans have a mental health disability, and yet there is tremendous stigma around mental illness, preventing millions from accessing treatment that could save their lives. We must demand that our public figures eradicate stigma, not add flame to the fire.”
After blowback erupted from the post, Langlois removed the post, according to local NBC affiliate WNYT.
Initially, Langlois said he didn’t remember posting the statement, telling The Post Star, “I might have. I post things all the time. I really don’t remember what I do half the time.” Later, he admitted posting the message, but said it shouldn’t have anything to do with him being the mayor, asserting:- READ MORE