Update February 2 (WMAL) : In an about face from Friday’s comments, Northam said Saturday he does not think he was in the racist yearbook photo and does not plan to resign. People on both sides of the aisle are urging him to resign, including the Democratic Party of Virginia, former Virgnia Gov. Terry McAuliffe, VA GOP Chair Jack Wilson, the NAACP and the Virginia Legislative Black Caucus.
“We stand with Democrats across Virginia and the country calling him to immediately resign. He no longer has our confidence or our support. Governor Northam must end this chapter immediately, step down, and let Lt. Gov. Justin Fairfax heal Virginia’s wounds and move us forward,” the Democratic Party of Virginia wrote in a statement Saturday.
Northam’s office said he will hold a press conference at 2:30 Saturday afternoon. WMAL will air it live.
RICHMOND, Va. (AP/WMAL) February 1 — Virginia Gov. Ralph Northam’s page in his 1984 medical school yearbook contains a photo of a person in blackface and another wearing a Ku Klux Klan hood next to different pictures of the governor.
The Virginian-Pilot obtained a copy of the photo Friday from Eastern Virginia Medical School library, which Northam attended. The photos, which were confirmed by The Associated Press, were first published by the conservative news outlet Big League Politics.
It’s unclear who the people in the picture are, but the rest of the half-page shows photos of Northam — in a jacket and tie, in a cowboy hat, and next to a car — beneath his name. The page lists his undergraduate alma mater and his interest as pediatrics.
Late Friday, Governor Northam released the following statement:
“Earlier today, a website published a photograph of me from my 1984 medical school yearbook in a costume that is clearly racist and offensive.
“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.
“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.”
Republican state Sen. Bryce Reeves said in a statement that Northam should resign if the reports of the photos are accurate.
“I hope that this picture is inaccurate and that the Governor brings clarity to this issue. This has no place in Virginia,” Reeves said.
Northam, a folksy pediatric neurologist who is personal friends with many GOP lawmakers, has recently come under fire from Republicans who have accused him of backing infanticide after he said he supported a bill loosening restrictions on late-term abortions.
Last week, Florida’s secretary of state resigned after photos from a 2005 Halloween party showed him in blackface while dressed as a Hurricane Katrina victim.
Copyright 2019 The Associated Press. All Rights Reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed. PHOTO: Eastern Virginia Medical School/Virginian-Pilot
