Earlier this week Director of the Prince William Soil and Water Conservation District Tiziana Bottino posted a comment on a Facebook page in reference to newly elected PWC GOP Chairman Tim Parrish, using the words “Yay, now you have your token black person, congratulations!”

Chairman Parrish, who was voted in on June 27, becoming the first ever African-American elected to the position, responded to the comment via this statement:

“Her rhetoric isn’t just insulting to me, it’s insulting to all black people. Some liberal Democrats claim that Black Lives Matter, but they often take us for granted, or view us just as tokens, or say that ‘we ain’t black’ based on who we vote for. I’ve experienced subtle racism before and I can handle it, but it’s unfortunate that black families in Prince William County have to see this from of one of their elected officials, especially when so many, including myself are working hard to unite our communities during a time of racial unrest.”

Bottino earlier this afternoon released the following statement to the PW Perspective:

“I apologize to Mr. Parrish and anyone else in the African-American community whom I offended. My comments were not directed at him personally, and I certainly did not mean to diminish his accomplishments or his worth.”

“My intent was to point out the hypocrisy of the Republican Party which supports a President who just days ago retweeted – and subsequently deleted – a video of a supporter chanting ‘white power,’ who order a group of Democratic Congresswomen of color to ‘go back where they came from,’ who regularly incites violence against Black Lives Matter protestors, and who refuses to condemn white supremacists and Neo-Nazis.”

“This is the same party that refused to condemn a recently-elected Republican Supervisor who used the n- and r-words on social media and that supporter Corey Stewart as former Chair of the Board of Supervisors despite his ardent support for 287(g) and his history of divisive rhetoric.”

“It is my hope that Mr. Parrish’s election as Chairman signals that the Prince William County Republican Committee is on a path towards increased inclusion. I understand that my word choice was wrong and I hope that Mr. Parrish will accept my apology.”