Ohio State Senator Criticized For Racist Language During Coronavirus Pandemic Hearing

An Ohio state Sen. Steve Huffman ofTipp City was under fire Thursday for racist language at a public health hearing on racism and the coronavirus pandemic. Huffman, a Republican and former emergency room physician, asked during a Senate Health Committee hearing why the state’s black community seems to have been hit harder by the coronavirus than the white community.

“"My point is I understand African Americans have a higher incidence of chronic conditions and it makes them more susceptible to death from COVID. But why doesn’t it make them more susceptible to [more than] just ... COVID?” Huffman asked at the hearing. “Could it just be that African Americans or the colored population do not wash their hands as well as other groups or wear a mask or do not socially distance themselves? That could be the explanation of the higher incidence?”

His comment was met with immediate criticism from members of the state Senate,who said Huffman’s choice of words reflects the systemic racism that contributed to recent Black Lives Matter protests.

“He highlights what racism is from a systematic perspective,” Rep. Stephanie Howse, president of the Ohio Legislative Black Caucus, told the Dayton Daily News.

“Do you think that someone who acknowledges the ‘coloreds’ is going to give the love and care that people need when they come through those doors?” Howse said.

Sen. Cecil Thomas said those in attendance “cringed” when they heard Huffman’s statement.

Huffman subsequently issued an apology, saying he only wanted to figure out why the pandemic has hit people of color harder and what can be done to help.

“Regrettably, I asked a question in an unintentionally awkward way that was perceived as hurtful and was exactly the opposite of what I meant,” Huffman told reporters. “I was trying to focus on why COVID-19 affects people of color at a higher rate since we really do not know all the reasons.”

Matt Borges, the former Ohio Republican chairman, came to Huffman’s defense on Twitter, saying his apology was “genuine.”