Justine Sacco, the former spokesperson of InterActiveCorp (IAC), has issued an apology for posting a racist tweet that got her fired.just before boarding a flight for her holiday to South Africa.
Just before boarding a flight to South Africa for vacations, Sacco had tweeted, "Going to Africa. Hope I don't get AIDS. Just kidding. I'm white!" The tweet went viral and attracted thousands of followers to her account, the majority of whom critiized her. IAC also confirmed that it has parted ways with its PR director.
"The offensive comment does not reflect the views and values of IAC. We take this issue very seriously, and we have parted ways with the employee in question," said an IAC spokesman in a statement.
As Sacco had boarded a long flight to South Africa, she was not aware that her tweet would generate so much attention. When she landed in Cape Town and found out about the response she received for her tweet, she deleted the tweet as well as her account. Now it seems that Sacco has realized her mistake as she has issued a public apology via South African newspaper The Star and US broadcaster ABCNews.
"Words cannot express how sorry I am, and how necessary it is for me to apologize to the people of South Africa, who I have offended due to a needless and careless tweet. For being insensitive to (the AIDS) crisis -- which does not discriminate by race, gender or sexual orientation, but which terrifies us all uniformly -- and to the millions of people living with the virus, I am ashamed," wrote Sacco.
"This is my father's country, and I was born here. I cherish my ties to South Africa and my frequent visits, but I am in anguish knowing that my remarks have caused pain to so many people here; my family, friends and fellow South Africans. I am very sorry for the pain I caused," added Sacco.
