County secretary in Pennsylvania apologizes for post on Facebook, where she said ‘ignorant blacks’ should ‘go to Africa’

This article is more than 2 years old

This article is more than 2 years old

A central Pennsylvania Republican official who referred to black NFL players who kneel during the national anthem as “baboons” has resigned.

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The former Beaver county Republican committee secretary Carla Maloney resigned on Friday in a letter to the committee’s chairman. Maloney apologized for her “insensitive” posts and said she would “work to show everyone” who she really was.

Maloney called the players “baboons” on her personal Facebook account, in a post written in response to athletes who have knelt during the national anthem to protest against social injustice and police violence.

In another post, she said “overpaid ignorant blacks” should “go to Africa”.

The Beaver county Republican committee said in a statement it had accepted Maloney’s resignation and denounced her comments.

Maloney could not immediately be reached.

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The NFL regular season begins this week. Kneeling during the anthem has been scarce in preseason but a grievance filed against the league by the former San Francisco 49ers quarterback Colin Kaepernick, an originator of the protests two years ago, is due to go to trial.

Donald Trump has made the protests a key part of his appeal to his base on the right of the Republican party, claiming players are against the anthem and the US flag.