Palin effigy taken down on eBay

WEST HOLLYWOOD, Calif., Jan. 19 (UPI) -- An online auction of an effigy of Alaska Gov. Sarah Palin was interrupted when eBay took down the posting.

Chad Michael Morrisette of West Hollywood, Calif., and his partner, Mito Aviles, put the item up for auction last week for a starting bid of $1,000, but e-Bay removed it from the site Sunday, the Los Angeles Times reported Monday.

The effigy of the former GOP vice presidential nominee was dressed in a red coat, had a beehive hairdo and glasses -- and a noose around its neck, when Morrisette, a professional window-display designer, put it on display at his home during the 2008 election campaign. He took it down about a week before Election Day after a meeting with the mayor of West Hollywood and several days of public protest outside his home.

Although eBay did not cite a specific reason for taking down the auction, its policy does not allow sellers to list "items that promote or glorify hatred, violence, racial or religious intolerance, or items that promote organizations with such views."

Morrisette told the Times he thinks the effigy ran afoul of the guidelines "because of the history of lynching." In an e-mail, Aviles said, "We think it was the noose in the picture that they deemed as glorified hatred."

The item was re-posted with a new picture showing no noose on the mannequin, although the sellers are still offering the noose as part of the purchase, the newspaper said.