Editor’s Note: The following article and its sources refer to a racial slur. Reader discretion is advised.
Following up on yesterday’s breaking news, The Review can now identify the incoming Dyson School freshman as Nate Panza. In a statement released today, Panza said the following:
“A video was taken of me using a word that is offensive and hurtful. The word has a long history of cruelty for the black community and is simply wrong. I am heartbroken I have hurt people; those I know and those I do not. I take full responsibility for my actions. I do not believe that my language that night aligns with who I have tried to be as a person, the values I live by or the manner in which I have conducted myself as an athlete. My immediate reaction to the video was to reach out to my entire high school community to offer my sincerest apologies.
“I plan to better educate myself on the issues of racism and injustice in America, as I want to be part of the solution and not the problem. The label ‘racist’ is not something I can live with and I will work to prove that every day for the rest of my life. It is my humble hope that I will come out of this incident as a better ally, better friend and better person. One word does not define me as a man or human being and I can only hope that the Cornell Community will allow me the opportunity to make the appropriate amends and give me that second chance.”
The Cornell Football team, as per an independent source, has dropped Panza, a football recruit. Petitions and campaigns have continued to circulate demanding that Panza’s admission be rescinded by the University and the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management. One petition circulated on the social media platform, Reddit, has garnered 57 signatures as of the publication of this article.
Neither Cornell University administration nor the Dyson School of Applied Economics and Management has released a statement as to whether Panza will be allowed to matriculate in the fall.
This is a developing story and updates will be posted.
This article was written by Managing Editor Samuel Kim.
