Candidate sorry for impression of civil rights leader
Saanich South Green says he was trying to honour Martin Luther King Jr. in speech
A Vancouver Island Green Party candidate says doing an impression of Martin Luther King Jr. at a rally was one of the biggest mistakes of his life.
Mark Neufeld, a Claremont Secondary School teacher running in Saanich South, borrowed lines from the U.S. civil rights leader’s last speech, I’ve Been to the Mountaintop, at the Victoria Conference Centre on Wednesday.
King made the speech on April 3, 1968, the day before he was assassinated.
“I went to Pkols, y’all,” Neufeld said, mimicking King’s booming Southern drawl as he referenced Mount Douglas.
“I went to the mountaintop. And I looked over and I’ve seen the promised land. Because the promised land is here. It’s British Columbia.”
While Neufeld said he was excited by the crowd, the speech was not received well by many on social media in the days that followed.
On Friday afternoon, Neufeld apologized via Facebook.
“It was my intention to honour one of my heroes and instead, I was deeply insensitive. It was a stunning lack of awareness to think that I could somehow honour Dr. King in this way. Instead of honouring him and his work, I hurt many people,” he said.
“I have to own my white privilege and my station in society. As a teacher of 25 years, I have no excuse.”
He told the Times Colonist that he had tried to personally respond to many of the online comments, but was reaching a point where he needed a rest.
“I’m trying to own it as much as I can. Even the [messages] that are harsh, I feel like, to go through this process, I need to answer them as best I can,” Neufeld said.
“At 51, it’s hard to believe I still have lessons like this to learn. I certainly didn’t mean any malice by it, but I should have known better.”
Green Party Leader Andrew Weaver was not available for an interview, but in a statement called the speech “completely inappropriate.”
“Mark is a passionate teacher, a long-standing advocate for youth and a kind-hearted person. That being said, what he did was wrong,” Weaver said.
Neufeld will remain a Green Party candidate.