State Representative David E. Lifferth is publicly apologizing for saying the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People is a racist organization. The Utah County Republican made his initial remarks on Twitter, then used his blog late Thursday to make his apology and announce he had deleted the offensive tweets. In his statement he called his tweets a joke and said they were insensitive to others. He said that the NAACP is not a racist organization and that he hopes that people will forgive him. Salt Lake City NAACP President Jeanetta Williams criticized Representative Lifferth’s initial twitter remarks as ignorant. Below is full the statement Lifferth sent KUER in an email:
I need to publicly apologize for my bad joke about Don Sterling and the NCAAP. My joke was in poor taste and insensitive to others. I have learned a lot in the past few days. The NCAAP is not a racist organization. My logic was flawed. For the record, I grew up at Ground Zero of the Civil Rights Era. I grew up in a family and was taught by parents to love all people. I have been taught much and have a great amount of love and respect for my teachers, classmates, coaches, team captains, teammates, friends, best friends, church members, neighbors, roommates, and family members of all races and ethnic backgrounds. I apologize for my insensitive words and hope that people can find it in their hearts to forgive a naïve person that truly does love and care for people of all races and nationalities. I have deleted my tweets and hope that they no longer hurt anyone’s feelings. David E. Lifferth
