The deeply weird world of LibDem politics took a turn for the truly bizarre in the early hours of this morning, as leadership hopeful Layla Moran stated impersonating Star Wars character Jar Jar Binks on Twitter. After being called out by LibDem activists for speaking in “rip-off patois”, Moran deleted the half-past-midnight tweet…

Yeah let's... let's not mimic the character who speaks in a rip-off patois, from the *really* racist movie, played by an actor who was racially abused by fans for years. Especially right now. https://t.co/X9mIQTHBJ2

— Morgan GD (@LiberalMorgan) June 9, 2020

Jar Jar binks is an negative Black Caribbean stereotype. He is a member of a brown skin alien race that speaks similarly to Caribbean patois, has big facial features and acts goofy. 🤦🏾‍♂️

— Anton🌹🏳️‍🌈 #FBPE 🇪🇺 🇬🇧 🏴󠁧󠁢󠁥󠁮󠁧󠁿 (@AntacsB) June 9, 2020

Great time to imitate a famously racist character

— Rebecca Wilks says Join Acorn! (@RebeccaWiIks) June 9, 2020

The character has been repeatedly criticised for engaging in minstrelsy and speaking in what has been accused of being parody of West African and Caribbean linguistics. After featuring prominently in the first Star Wars prequel, his role was slimmed down in later films, no doubt due its critical reception. There are now inevitable calls for Layla to apologise…