Saline County Commissioner Jim Gile in Kansas has apologized for using a racial epithet during a meeting on April 2.

The Salina Journal reported that Gile later apologized for using the expression “n*gger-rigging it” while discussing a repair project. He claimed he actually intended to say the phrase “jury-rigged” but accidentally sputtered out the racial slur.

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“I am not a prejudiced person,” Gile said. “I have built Habitat homes for colored people.”

A group of people called for Gile to resign on Tuesday, according to KSAL. One woman said the phrase “tells of a time of hatred and ugliness in our nation, and it hurts my heart” while another woman alleged “what comes from a man’s mouth, comes from his heart.”

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[Embarrassed man covers mouth via Shutterstock]