When Pete Buttigieg dropped out of the Democratic Primary race, it marked the end of a historic presidential bid, the first ever made by an openly gay candidate.
As with many campaign conclusions, his departure was met with an array of responses.
Of course, for some ignorant individuals homophobic jokes seemed like the appropriate response.
Why waste a chance to show the world you're a bigot?
One came from professional golfer, Scott Piercy. However his homophobic response ignited backlash.
Because that's what happens with your homophobic jokes when you're famous, Scott.
On March 1, upon learning that Pete Buttigieg ended his campaign for President, PGA golfer Scott Piercy took to Instagram to rub some salt in the wound. The Instagram story—which Piercy later took down—contained all the trappings of a bigotry.
QNN, Pepe the frog, homophobic sexual references intended to mock and demean...
@JeffDeRiso/Twitter
The hilarious joke Piercy couldn't resist sharing?
"Peter pulls out early from behind."
That fake news headline is being discussed by a news anchor version of "Pepe the Frog", a well-known symbol of alt-right bigotry and White supremacy on the internet.
"QAnon" is also referenced in the meme, completing the alt-right/White supremacy trifecta. QAnon posits that an alleged plot against Donald Trump is constantly in the works anytime the President or his associates are caught lying or breaking laws.
Piercy would learn that upon kicking the hornet's nest, removing the original post only get's one so far. His Instagram story was reposted to Twitter and continued to arouse backlash.
The bad press was enough to provoke an apology from Piercy, whose approach to back-pedaling was minimal and uninspiring. On a subsequent Instagram story, the golfer responded with a very brief statement.
"Whenever I post my intent is NEVER to offend. I want to apologise if any of my recent story posts have been offensive. I will do better!"
Of course, the style of an Instagram story tends to dumb down the sobering nature of an apology, as a screenshot shows.
@JeffDeRiso/Twitter
The Twitter response was one of complete dissatisfaction.
Official denunciations were made regarding Piercy's idea of humor as well.
A spokesperson for the PGA Tour told Golf Digest that Piercy's conduct is not supported by the organization.
"We were made aware of Scott's post and are disappointed in the lack of judgement used."
Whether Piercy learned posting his favorite homophobic or White supremacist jokes and memes on Instagram isn't a good idea remains to be seen.
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@Doug Ellin/X
@evanrachelwood/Instagram