How Long Does it Take to Apologize When You Know You Were Wrong

Duke University President Richard Brodhead has issued a long overdue apology to the three falsely accused lacrosse players. These three young men suffered through a false accusation of rape by a stripper they foolishly hired, an out of control prosecutor ready to throw them into prison just to get re-elected, and the racially motivated denouncement by Jesse Jackson and members of the University faculty. While nobody can deny the terrible treatment of blacks by this country, the notion that fairness requires some white people be treated in the same terrible manner is absurd. To determine guilt based on the skin colors of the alleged victim and accused does not balance the scales of justice.

Some Duke faculty members saw:

Accuser is black
Accused is white (and rich to boot)
They must be guilty.

The leaders of the University should have denounced this lynch mob in their midst. They did not. However, the innocence of these young men became quickly apparent as the accusations began to unravel almost immediately. The charges were (finally) dropped last April 11th by Nifong's replacement. Whether you go from the day after the unruly faculty branded the players with guilt before being proven, from the time their innocence became obvious, or when the charge were dropped; the President of Duke University has had many months to issue this apology. Did he wrestle with the political or legal consequences of the apology? If so, the timing of the apology is yet another instance of the university doing what it is now apologizing for: not doing enough to support the players during their ordeal. It is far too little and far too late.