McKenna's policy assistant: 'Shut up and speak english #asians'
SEATTLE -- A campaign staff member of gubernatorial candidate Rob McKenna is in hot water over a tweet she sent out months ago.
Kathlyn Ehl, a policy assistant to McKenna, sent out the following tweet on Jan. 25: "shut up and speak english #asians."
The tweet was deleted shortly after The Stranger first broke the story on Monday; however, a cached version of the website affirmed the tweet had, in fact, been sent out.
Ehl has not responded to KOMO's request for an interview.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Ehl began working for the McKenna campaign in April, and her duties include "preparing and gathering research materials, monitoring the media, and providing rapid responses to a wide variety of policy issues as they arise. "
She recently graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in political science, according to her profile.
In an email message sent to The Seattle Times, Ehl apologized for the tweets. She said the comments were "harmful" and "offensive," according to The Times.
On Monday afternoon, McKenna also released a statement.
"The tweets sent by a member of my campaign staff, Kathlyn Ehl, which were reported today were offensive and inappropriate. I am glad to see that she has apologized for her actions," the statement reads. "The fact that she made the comments before joining my campaign does not make them any less hurtful to Asian Americans and the elderly. They were insensitive and wrong regardless of their context. She has done the right thing by apologizing. I am hopeful that she has learned a humbling lesson that will give her greater perspective about having charity in her heart when considering the challenges faced by others."
Kathlyn Ehl, a policy assistant to McKenna, sent out the following tweet on Jan. 25: "shut up and speak english #asians."
The tweet was deleted shortly after The Stranger first broke the story on Monday; however, a cached version of the website affirmed the tweet had, in fact, been sent out.
Ehl has not responded to KOMO's request for an interview.
According to her LinkedIn profile, Ehl began working for the McKenna campaign in April, and her duties include "preparing and gathering research materials, monitoring the media, and providing rapid responses to a wide variety of policy issues as they arise. "
She recently graduated from the University of Washington with a degree in political science, according to her profile.
In an email message sent to The Seattle Times, Ehl apologized for the tweets. She said the comments were "harmful" and "offensive," according to The Times.
On Monday afternoon, McKenna also released a statement.
"The tweets sent by a member of my campaign staff, Kathlyn Ehl, which were reported today were offensive and inappropriate. I am glad to see that she has apologized for her actions," the statement reads. "The fact that she made the comments before joining my campaign does not make them any less hurtful to Asian Americans and the elderly. They were insensitive and wrong regardless of their context. She has done the right thing by apologizing. I am hopeful that she has learned a humbling lesson that will give her greater perspective about having charity in her heart when considering the challenges faced by others."
What gets me angry is being forced to press 1 to continue in English, hold the line to continue in Spanish.
The nation has a national language for a reason... So we can all communicate. Learn it! :)
@SG1 what does this have to do with this story? All this tell us, is that you are an impatient guy, and when you are impatient, you take matters into your own hands, and when you take matters into your own hands, you spew nonsense, dont be the guy who spews nonsense...get direct TV.
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@SG1
Well...we don't have a national language. Â Because the majority of the founding fathers were British subjects originally, the default language became English. Â The reality is that it is next to impossible to succeed in this country without having at least a functional grasp of the English language. Â
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But, for the life of me, I cannot understand why so many people get so violently angry about having to "press one for English". Â Is your time so incredibly valuable that taking 2 extra seconds is a cause for anger? Â Also remember that with private companies, there's a good chance that calls are coming from more than just the United States. Â There are so many things to be angry about....this just doesn't seem to be one that's worth it.