He discussed increasing funding for at-risk youth programs and affordable housing, and scheduled the first of what may be several visits to historically black universities.
In the nearly two weeks since his governorship was upended by revelations that he had a racist photo on his medical school yearbook page, Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia has scrambled to rebuild his image among black Virginians. It is an effort that has hit a few bumps and may or may not be successful at winning over a constituency that heavily backed him during his campaign.
“Right now, the ball’s in his court,” said Delegate Lamont Bagby, the chairman of the state’s legislative black caucus.
Northam has been mocked for the revelation that he was only now reading “Roots” by Alex Haley and “The Case for Reparations” by Ta-Nehisi Coates. His comments that the first Africans brought to Virginia 400 years ago were “indentured servants” did nothing to help his case. And one of the first major pieces of legislation that lawmakers passed after the blackface controversy was a tax bill — now headed to the governor’s desk for his signature — that was strongly criticized by black legislators for providing few benefits to poor Virginians.
“That was a missed opportunity,” said Delegate Lashrecse Aird, a black lawmaker from the Petersburg area.
Northam faced increased pressure to step down after he admitted that he had darkened his face to dance like Michael Jackson in a contest in the early 1980s. Some of the political pressure has since shifted toward the two other Democrats next in line to replace him: lieutenant governor, Justin E. Fairfax, who has been accused by two women of sexual assault; and attorney general, Mark Herring, who acknowledged that he had worn blackface for a costume around the same time as Northam had.
The next official would be Kirk Cox, the Republican speaker of the House. “You can see out of the blocks it has been difficult for him,” Cox said of the governor. Leading any effort at racial reconciliation would be a challenge for the governor, Cox said pointedly, “while he’s in office.”
As reality sets in that the governor has no intention of resigning, many of those who have expressed fury at him are now focused on how the scandal might prompt policy changes for black communities. There is anything but business as usual in the capital.
“Normally in a year in which something like this had not happened, we’d all turn and focus on getting elected,” said Delegate Jay Jones, a Norfolk Democrat. “But everyone sees there’s more at stake now.”
The ACLU of Virginia sent the governor a letter, asking that he push for a constitutional amendment to allow felons the right to vote, an issue that disproportionately affects black residents.
A coalition of black elected officials and civic leaders has released seven pages of demands, asking the governor to increase funding for historically black colleges and universities in the state, create an office of equity and inclusion, and create a fund to support minority-owned businesses.
“There’s one of two options: Resign or adhere to our demands,” said Wes Bellamy, a city councilman in Charlottesville and a member of the coalition, Virginia Black Politicos.
If Northam does not meet their demands, he added, “We’ll continue to make his life hell. There will be protests everywhere he goes. There will be very little cooperation from people who look like us. There’s going to be a stain, not only on himself, but on the party.”
Three days after the scandal broke, Northam called Charles Steele Jr., the president of the Southern Christian Leadership Conference, the organization once led by King.
“'I’m not like that,'” Steele recalled the governor telling him toward the beginning of their conversation.
The organization had called for Northam to resign, but the governor sought to discuss what had happened and get advice on how he might engage in racial reconciliation.
Steele and Bernard Lafayette Jr., a civil rights activist who was close to King, met with Northam at his mansion for about an hour. The men discussed King and Mikhail Gorbachev, the former Soviet premier, as examples of how great leaders bring about change, Steele said. The governor said he would think about taking training through the organization, but did not make any commitments, Steele said.
“It’s on his plate now,” he said. “We cooked the food, we delivered it, and we left it on his table.”
Before the controversy, many black leaders saw hope in Northam. His predecessor, Terry McAuliffe, under whom he served as lieutenant governor, made some strides in connecting with black communities.
As a candidate, Northam condemned the violence in Charlottesville in 2017, when white supremacists staged a violent march against efforts to remove Confederate statues. Northam said then that he favored removal of the statues, but later hedged, saying that decision should be left up to local communities.
“Ralph is a personal friend,” said Bellamy, the Charlottesville councilman. “That’s part of why this hurts so much.”
Although Bellamy had been among those calling for Northam’s resignation, he said he believed the governor wanted to do the right thing.
“He has to allow the folks most affected by this to lead this work,” he said. “He’s shown he’s not there yet.”
The governor has had a series of one-on-one meetings with members of the black legislative caucus, as well as black mayors and community advocates around Virginia. He has also quietly talked with the many African-American state employees who work in the same Capitol Square tower where his office is.
His advisers stressed that he will not embark on any sort of an “apology tour,” as some news media outlets have reported. But they said he was considering building on his reading list by scheduling meetings with scholars on race, history and Virginia.
Northam is scheduled to attend a social justice event at Virginia Union University on Feb. 21, though it was unclear whether he would speak.
On Wednesday night, Northam was to host a Black History Month dinner. But he postponed the gathering until later in the month because, aides said, he wanted to turn it from a formal gathering into more of a dialogue.
Last Friday, Northam met with John W. Boyd Jr., the president of the National Black Farmers Association, who runs a farm 90 miles southwest of Richmond.
The two men prayed, and Boyd said he offered advice, telling the governor to talk publicly about the matter and also to reach out to black organizations to hear about their needs. He raised some areas the governor could work on, including affordable housing, education and the relationship between black farmers and banks. But Boyd said he mainly saw the meeting as a way to show the governor he forgave him.
“I believe it’s a bad time in America for race,” he said. “You’ve never seen it so divided. Somewhere along the line, somebody has to say, ‘Let’s try some unity.'”
This article originally appeared in The New York Times.