On January 15th, 2006, an episode titled 'Return of the King' aired. The episode portrays a fantasy in which Martin Luther King is in a coma from 1968 to 2000, at which point he wakes up and must deal with 21st century culture. Within the episode, King addresses a group of African Americans saying: 'Will you ignorant niggas please shut the hell up?!'' He is at first embraced, but then rejected by the American public after saying we must 'turn the other cheek' when dealing with terrorists. The episode drew some criticism for its depiction of King. On January 30th, USA Today published an opinion piece titled ''Boondocks' steps over line in its treatment of King,' which noted Al Sharpton had demanded an apology from Cartoon Network for the episode. Cartoon Network released a statement of support for the episode, saying: 'We think Aaron McGruder came up with a thought-provoking way of not only showing Dr.

King's bravery but also of reminding us of what he stood and fought for Despite the controversy, the episode was earned a Peabody Award.