City of Binghamton mayoral candidate Miles Burnett is facing scrutiny after a video was posted on YouTube in which he used a racial slur as a teenager.
The video, in which Burnett analyzed the lyrics of a song, was posted on the platform by user “The Real Miles Burnett” on Sept. 23.
In a Sept. 23 statement posted on Facebook, Burnett apologized for the “offensive language” he used in “a foolish social media post” he said he made when he was 14.
“I am deeply sorry to all the people I’ve hurt and let down,” he said. “It was a stupid thing to do and I would not make the same choice today as an adult. Those words were not appropriate then, and they are not appropriate now. I got into this race to fight for a better Binghamton for everyone and that’s what I will continue to do.”
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City of Binghamton Mayor Jared Kraham said in a Sept. 24 statement the video “should disqualify (Burnett) from serving as mayor.”
“My opponent and I are around the same age,” Kraham said. “All of us make mistakes when we’re young, but we can all agree that the repeated racist language in the video was as unequivocally wrong then as it is now.”
Kraham further accused Burnett of lying about his age in the video, claiming Burnett was “nearly 17.”
A Sept. 23 Facebook post by the Binghamton City Democratic Committee praised Burnett for “being the bigger person” amid the video’s release.
“It takes a lot of courage to take accountability for mistakes,” the post read. “Accountability is what Binghamton needs in a leader.”
A Facebook post made by Broome Republicans on Sept. 24 linked to the video, calling Burnett’s behavior “abhorrent” and suggesting he should “drop out of the race immediately.”
In a Sept. 24 email statement from the Miles Burnett Campaign Burnett again apologized for the “inappropriate video that I posted as an adolescent child.”
“I’m sorry for the pain and harm I’ve caused. I have done a lot of growing over the years and have done a lot of work on myself to learn about the impact of systemic racism, unchecked bias and its harmfulness to individuals and to our communities,” he said.
In the same email, Broome Democratic Committee Chair Karen Beebe accused Binghamton Republicans of drawing public attention away from important issues.
“We must view Miles as an adult today who is championing issues that help all people in our community unlike the current administration,” said Beebe. “Let’s be clear: this is a desperate attempt by the Kraham Campaign to distract from finding solutions for the real issues facing our City. Voters deserve honest debate about policy and leadership in the mayor’s race, not political theater designed to deflect from their own lack of plans and disappointing track record.”
This article originally appeared on Binghamton Press & Sun-Bulletin: Binghamton mayor candidate under fire for past video with racial slur