Ralph Northam speaking to Views News TV as candidate at a Pakistan Independence Day event in Virginia August 2017
Governor Ralph Northam on Friday apologized to Virginians over his 1984 medical school yearbook photo that appeared in the media and shows a man in blackface and another dressed in a Ku Klux Klan costume.
“Earlier today, a website published a photograph of me from my 1984 medical school yearbook in a costume that is clearly racist and offensive,” the Democrat said in a statement released by the Governor’s Office as the news of the photo spread across in Virginia and the mainstream media.
But Virginia Democrats and the State’s Republican Party issued calls for Northam – who over the years has been an advocate for equality with a commitment to diversity – to immediately resign following publication of the now viral photo.
“Racism has no place in Virginia,” Republican Party Chairman Jack Wilson said in a statement.
“These pictures are wholly inappropriate. If Governor Northam appeared in blackface or dressed in a KKK robe, he should resign immediately.”
Governor Northam, a physician and veteran, expressed a deep sense of regret over his appearance in the photo but said the photo does not represent what he stands for today.
“I am deeply sorry for the decision I made to appear as I did in this photo and for the hurt that decision caused then and now.
“This behavior is not in keeping with who I am today and the values I have fought for throughout my career in the military, in medicine, and in public service. But I want to be clear, I understand how this decision shakes Virginians’ faith in that commitment,” Northam added.
He said he is sorry that the photo hurt his followers and pledged to heal the damage.
“I recognize that it will take time and serious effort to heal the damage this conduct has caused. I am ready to do that important work. The first step is to offer my sincerest apology and to state my absolute commitment to living up to the expectations Virginians set for me when they elected me to be their Governor.”
