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New York Governor Kathy Hochul has apologized after saying Black children in the Bronx don't know the word "computer."
On Monday (May 6), Hochul appeared at the Milken Institute Global Conference in California to discuss Empire AI, "a $400 million consortium she is leading to create an artificial intelligence computing center in upstate New York," The Guardian reports.
Hochul dropped the controversial comment at one point during the conference.
“Right now we have, you know, young Black kids growing up in the Bronx who don’t even know what the word ‘computer’ is,” she said. “They don’t know, they don’t know these things.”
Amanda Septimo, a New York State Assemblymember representing the south Bronx, said Hochul's comments were “harmful, deeply misinformed and genuinely appalling."
"Repeating harmful stereotypes about one of our most underserved communities only perpetuates systems of abuse," Septimo wrote on X.
Fellow assembly member Karines Reyes also called on Hochul to “do better”.
“Our children are bright, brilliant, extremely capable, and more than deserving of any opportunities that are extended to other kids,” she said.
Later on Monday, Hochul apologized for her comments, saying “I misspoke and I regret it."
“Of course Black children in the Bronx know what computers are – the problem is that they too often lack access to the technology needed to get on track to high-paying jobs in emerging industries like AI," Hochul said in a statement.
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