NY Times: “Just two years ago, nearly every national politician in the Democratic Party was calling for Gov. Ralph Northam of Virginia to resign. A racist picture was discovered on Mr. Northam’s medical school yearbook page, and the physician-turned-politician said he did not know which person he was in the photograph — the white man dressed in blackface or the one in Ku Klux Klan regalia.
A series of twists helped Mr. Northam stay in office, including simultaneous scandals that engulfed his possible successors, a cross-generational coalition of Black activists who decided to defy national politics and stick by him, and a commitment from Mr. Northam’s administration to prioritize racial justice. And he followed through, shocking even his most ardent supporters, with a series of policy accomplishments that focused on racial equity.
Last week, as the ballot was set for Virginians to choose their next governor, Mr. Northam sat down for an extended interview to discuss his 2019 scandal and the personal and political evolution that followed. He reflected on what he has learned about race and his own white privilege, and how that understanding has changed his political priorities. He dismissed recent national concerns about critical race theory and so-called wokeness, saying his path of discovery has made him a better person.
This interview has been lightly edited and condensed for clarity.”