CHARLOTTE, North Carolina: A U.S. Congressman from North Carolina scrambled to apologize after telling the BBC in a broadcast interview that he believed that the protesters were motivated by jealousy.
"They hate white people because white people are successful and they're not," Robert Pittenger said in a televised interview.
He later apologized on Twitter, saying, "What is taking place in my hometown breaks my heart. Today, my anguish led me to respond to a reporter's question in a way that I regret."
Largely peaceful protests dwindled on Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina, as police chose not to enforce a curfew prompted by two nights of riots after a black man was shot to death by a police officer.
A crowd of hundreds gathered, chanted and marched for a third successive night in the city of about 810,000 people, demanding justice for Keith Scott, 43, who was shot dead by a black police officer on Tuesday.
"They hate white people because white people are successful and they're not," Robert Pittenger said in a televised interview.
He later apologized on Twitter, saying, "What is taking place in my hometown breaks my heart. Today, my anguish led me to respond to a reporter's question in a way that I regret."
Largely peaceful protests dwindled on Friday in Charlotte, North Carolina, as police chose not to enforce a curfew prompted by two nights of riots after a black man was shot to death by a police officer.
A crowd of hundreds gathered, chanted and marched for a third successive night in the city of about 810,000 people, demanding justice for Keith Scott, 43, who was shot dead by a black police officer on Tuesday.
