Spartanburg teenager, daughter of local news anchor, responds to racist and homophobic videos

[ad_1]

Videos showing the daughter of WSPA news anchor Amy Wood and Magistrate Judge Mike Wood using racist and homophobic language surfaced on numerous social media and websites on January 12.

Wood’s daughter Gracie posted a video in response to the viral videos, apologizing for the “awful and disgusting” content.

“There is absolutely no excuse for anything that came out of my mouth and I can only imagine the pain people have felt watching these videos,” Gracie said in her apology.

Gracie Wood said she wasn’t raised to believe these things, but understands that doesn’t change the impact of her words, which hurt people from Black, Hispanic, Jewish, Asian, Middle Eastern and LGBTQ+. She said she plans to use this opportunity to learn and grow and become a better person.

“I have met several leaders in the communities that I have offended,” Gracie Wood said. “And I’ve had several people contact me to guide me. I hope that with their guidance and my personal responsibility, I will become more educated and come out the other side as a better human being.”

There will be consequences for Gracie as a result of the release of these videos. She is a senior at Oakbrook Preparatory School in Spartanburg and has performed with the school’s drama department and was a member of the volleyball team. She announced in her apology video that she was no longer attending her school and would not be allowed to walk to graduation. She also said there would be “several other consequences to come.”

Oakbrook Prep released the following statement on its social media platforms along with a letter to school families on January 12:

“We have been made aware of recent statements by an Oakbrook student. Although these statements were made off campus at a non-school related event, we find these comments and the behavior of those involved offensive and extremely disappointing. The statements made do not reflect Oakbrook’s mission and core values, which are academic excellence, character, community, creativity, and diversity. As advocates for all of God’s people, we strive to create a respectful and inclusive community based on biblical principle and that appreciates the richness of different cultures and perspectives Our school leadership prayerfully considers steps we can take to strengthen our core values, enable our students and staff to learn from this experience and promote a caring environment where everyone in our community feels respected and t valued.

The story continues

Both videos were first posted by Instagram account @saucecarolina. The account said in a direct message that it would not reveal the original source of the videos. The Herald-Journal will not publish the videos on our site due to their racist and homophobic language.

On January 14, Amy Wood posted a statement on her Facebook page apologizing on behalf of her daughter and her family for the “horrible, disgusting and vile things my daughter said on the videos many of you have views”.

Wood also said her family will work together to learn and strengthen her beliefs of equality and inclusion.

Upstate activist Bruce Wilson of Black Lives Matter and Fighting Injustice Together said he spoke with Amy and Mike Wood on the night of January 12. Wilson said the Woods apologized.

Wilson expressed that he had no desire to see Amy Wood held accountable for anything her teenage daughter did or said.

“There have to be consequences. I think this incident will probably affect him (Gracie) a lot in the future and affect him now.” said Wilson. “And it’s painful to hear that language, especially for black people, Jews and gay people.”

Ashley Dill hails from Spartanburg and has been on staff at the Herald-Journal for 14 years. She covers community news and can be reached at [email protected] or on Twitter at @ashleydill_shj.

This article originally appeared on Herald-Journal: Local news anchor’s daughter apologizes for racist and homophobic videos

[ad_2]