Congresswoman Cynthia McKinney’s apology on the House floor yesterday for her altercation with Capitol police officer last week has drawn many reactions from the Black community. McKinney said she sincerely regretted the incident and she admitted that there should not have been physical contact with the police.
“I come before this body to personally express again my sincere regret about the encounter with the Capitol Hill police-,” McKinney, a Democrat from Georgia, said in a bone-minute statement to her fellow members of the House of Representatives. “There should not have been any physical contact in this incident-I am sorry that this misunderstanding happened at all, and I regret its escalation and I apologize.”
McKinney‘s apology came just days after she said she was a victim of racial profiling.
“She probably was [a victim of racial profiling], but that never excuses her acting out in a violent manner,” said Lamont Harrell, a senior majoring in political science at HowardUniversity. ”Nobody is allowed to do that no matter the case.”
McKinney‘s comments also came after a federal grand jury subpoenaed two Capitol Hill aides who witnessed the March 29 incident with McKinney and the Capitol Police Officer, according to statements made in the House record April 5 as reported in The Washington Post.
“I think someone told her to apologize. You don’t apologize for the way you felt. Someone persuaded her to apologize because the way she responded looked kind of suspicious in the public eye,” said Udo Asomugha, senior public health major at University of California at San Diego.
Wednesday night, members of the Congressional Black Caucus privately urged McKinney to do something to counter the GOP, and several colleagues renewed the effort yesterday morning, according to Washington Post reports. Shortly after noon, McKinney made her brief floor statement.
“She has always been a very polarizing figure,” said Merle Black, a political science professor at Emory University, in Washington Post reports. “For most politicians, this would be a one-day event-you would want to have a photo op with the officer and kiss and make up. But this is going the opposite way.”
