John Hoskins, a high school football coach in North Carolina, has resigned from his position after capturing an unflattering moment on Instagram during a night out at the bar. The 32-year-old coach at Knightdale High School was celebrating with friends when he shouted out “white power” and used the n-word in a video posted to Instagram, according to WTVD.
In the video, Hoskins can be seen and heard shouting: “White power, Knightdale. I still love you, N—–!”
Hoskins deleted the video from Instagram, but it had already been spotted and reported to administrators.
After the video circulated and he stepped down from his job, Hoskins issued an apology and claimed that he is not racist.
“15 seconds of fame in the wrong way. I’ve ruined the last 12 years of my career,” Hoskins told ABC11. “Just to set the record, I’m not racist. I don’t mean it in a negative way.”
Perhaps the most bizarre part of Hoskins’ apology came when he said that he got comfortable using the n-word because he has friends who are black that have told him he has a pass to use the word.
“I guess I’ve been around them for so long. We’re friends. I mean nothing from it,” he said. “The word can be used in multiple ways. They treat me as any of their own friends.” He also claims that his players get a kick out of him saying the word.
“They joke around. We joke around. They walk up to me and say it. ‘Hey coach, just say it. You’re a good coach. Just say it.’ Once in a while, it slips,” he said. “Once a year, it slips. To have them smile and laugh. Besides that, I mean nothing from it.”
Yeah, okay buddy.
School district superintendent Cathy Moore issued a statement on the incident and said that Hoskins’ actions violated the district’s code of conduct policy.
“The language, the context is not OK. And unfortunately, social media will show you a piece of something but not all of something. And this man is an adult. And he should know better,” Moore said.