I'm not alone in thinking Northam should step down. The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus, the Congressional Black Caucus and the NAACP -- among others -- have all called for the governor to resign.
In his apology Friday, Northam said he was one of the two people depicted in the photo."I am deeply sorry for the decision I made to appear as I did in this photo," he said.
But come Saturday, Northam backtracked and said, "I believe now and then that I am not either of the people in this photo."
His conflicting statement on Friday raises the question: How could Northam have looked at that photo and been confused about dressing in either a Klan outfit or blackface? While he denied being in the photograph, Northam admitted on Saturday' that he darkened his skin in 1984 as part of a Michael Jackson costume.
The Virginia Legislative Black Caucus's statement on Saturday sums up the situation now so well: "The damage that has been done by these revelations is irreparable ... Another moment should not pass before we hear Governor Northam do the honorable thing and resign."
Some may say that what Northam did was decades ago -- history: Shouldn't we allow that he has evolved, as he insists, and changed for the better? I hope those who are raising that point will defer to African Americans, the wronged community in this case, in determining whether Northam's apologies were enough.
As a nation, though, I think we should carefully consider the most productive response in situations like this. We should be open to the power of legitimate transformation and redemption. We need to allow and encourage people to evolve for the better when it comes to racism, sexism and other forms of bigotry. And we should applaud those who sincerely change in the hopes it will inspire others to follow suit. If not, we could lose future allies and possibly thwart the advancement of our own nation.
Of course, words of contrition should also be backed up by actions. The late Sen. Robert Byrd serves as a powerful example of this. Byrd was an active member of the KKK in his younger years, but he went on to call it a "major mistake." He later reflected on his time in the Klan and said, "I know now I was wrong ... I apologized a thousand times ... and I don't mind apologizing over and over again."
When Byrd died in 2010, Ben Jealous, president of the NAACP at the time, paid tribute to the Democrat and wrote, "Senator Byrd reflects the transformative power of this nation." Congressman and civil rights leader John Lewis wrote, "Senator Byrd appropriated money for memorials to civil rights' icons. And when President George W. Bush signed the extension of the Voting Rights Act in 2006, Senator Byrd stood alongside me and Senator Ted Kennedy, signing the register, a proud supporter of the legislation's renewal."
Former President Barack Obama's stance on marriage equality is another example of an authentic evolution. When Obama was running for the US Senate in 2004, he declared, "Marriage is between a man and a woman." While he did go on in the same interview to affirm the rights of gays and lesbians, he distinguished marriage from other civil rights and said, "We have a set of traditions in place that I think need to be preserved."
If he were forever labeled as a bigot for opposing marriage equality, the LGBT community would have lost an important ally. By 2012, Obama declared his support for same-sex marriage, and backed up his statement with both words and actions that helped in the LGBT community's struggle for equality and dignity.
As a Muslim-American, I would be greatly heartened to see anti-Muslim bigots, even the leading ones who profit from spewing hate, to evolve and embrace the American values of tolerance and pluralism. But it would take more than a simple apology. It would require concrete action over time -- like Byrd's and Obama's -- to prove that they had genuinely changed.
While it's clear that Northam should step down as governor, it doesn't mean that he and others like him should not be encouraged to change their minds. In the long run, it's vital for our nation's future.
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