Andrew Yang Apologizes For Tweet Saying Joe Rogan Isn’t Racist Because He Works With Black People
Former Democratic presidential candidate Andrew Yang has apologized for his tweet defending Joe Rogan, in which he asserted Rogan isn’t racist because he works with Black people.
“I don’t think Joe Rogan is a racist — the man interacts with and works with black people literally all of the time,” Yang shared to Twitter Sunday.
He said he deleted the tweet because it was “wrong-headed. It also hurt people, which is never my intent. I’m sorry. I’m learning and appreciate those who reached out to express their feelings,” Yang added.
Yang sent those tweets one day after Rogan, who has been the middle of controversy for his viewing on Covid-19 and vaccine misinformation on his Spotify podcast, handed out a public apology for his past use of racial slurs.
In a five-minute video posted on Instagram on Saturday he started, “I never used it to be racist.” He said though he used the N-word in the past, he hasn’t used it in years, calling his behavior “the most regretful and shameful thing that I’ve ever had to talk about publicly.”
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Yang’s remarks quickly sparked backlash, also outrage from Democratic National Committee Chairman Jaime Harrison, who sent out a tweet saying, “Dude… seriously?! You joking right Andrew? Is that now the new defining line… working with folks?!”
Yang deleted his initial tweets and shared a new thread saying, “I think we should have the capacity to forgive people — whether a podcaster or a mayor — if they mess up. Maybe it’s because I mess up too.”