Birth Signs

Claim:   Photograph shows sign welcoming visitors to Connecticut and apologizing for President George W. Bush.

Status:   False.

Examples:   [Collected on the Internet, 2005]

Origins:   What we have here is a confluence of two trends: states and municipalities identifying themselves as the birthplaces or homes of persons of notable achievement on border signs that offer welcome to visitors, and pranksters with digital editing tools engaging in a little partisan political humor by manipulating pictures of such signs.

Due to his strong ties to the state of Texas, many Americans are unaware that President George W. Bush was actually born in New Haven, Connecticut (although he was raised in and makes his home in Texas). The photograph of the sign displayed above has been edited to add the "We Apologize" phrase and the "Birthplace of George W. Bush" legend — the original looks like this:

This joke is in the same vein as a manipulated version of a "Welcome to Arkansas" sign that has been circulating for several years, one in which a portion of the sign was altered to identify President Bill Clinton as a sex offender "in compliance with Megan's Law":

Although former president Bill Clinton was born in Hope, Arkansas, he and his wife, Senator Hillary Clinton, currently reside in New York.

Last updated:   1 November 2005