Parker Rice, parents of Levi Pettit apologize for
‘horrible mistake’ made in OU SAE video
By Robert Wilonsky
Published: March 10, 2015 11:50 am
Update at 6:40 p.m.: Moments after Levi Pettit’s
family apologized for their son’s behavior in the SAE video, Parker Rice — the
recent Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas graduate — sent his own
apology, via his father Bob. Here it is in full:
“I am deeply sorry for what I did Saturday night. It was
wrong and reckless. I made a horrible mistake by joining into the singing and
encouraging others to do the same. On Monday, I withdrew from the university,
and sadly, at this moment our family is not able to be in our home because of
threatening calls as well as frightening talk on social media.
“I know everyone wants to know why or how this happened. I
admit it likely was fueled by alcohol consumed at the house before the bus
trip, but that’s not an excuse. Yes, the song was taught to us, but that too
doesn’t work as an explanation. It’s more important to acknowledge what I did
and what I didn’t do. I didn’t say no, and I clearly dismissed an important
value I learned at my beloved high school, Dallas Jesuit. We were taught to be
‘Men for Others.’ I failed in that regard, and in those moments, I also
completely ignored the core values and ethics I learned from my parents and
others.
“At this point, all I can do is be thoughtful and prayerful
about my next steps, but I am also concerned about the fraternity friends still
on campus. Apparently, they are feeling unsafe and some have been harassed by
others. Hopefully, the university will protect them.
“For me, this is a devastating lesson and I am seeking
guidance on how I can learn from this and make sure it never happens again. My
goal for the long-term is to be a man who has the heart and the courage to
reject racism wherever I see or experience it in the future.
“Thank you for your consideration of my deepest apologies
for what I did.”
Bob Rice says that “at the moment, we are not doing
interviews.”
Update at 6:17 p.m.: The family of a second
Dallas-area family has confirmed their son can be seen in the now-infamous University of
Oklahoma SAE video. And they are
apologizing for his actions.
Moments ago The Dallas Morning News received a
statement attributed to Brody and Susan Pettit, parents of recent Highland Park
High School graduate Levi Pettit.
“As parents of Levi, we love him and care for him deeply,”
says the statement, which has also been posted on this website. “He
made a horrible mistake, and will live with the consequences forever. However,
we also know the depth of our son’s character. He is a good boy, but what we
saw in those videos is disgusting. While it may be difficult for those who only
know Levi from the video to understand, we know his heart, and he is not a
racist. We raised him to be loving and inclusive and we all remain surrounded
by a diverse, close-knit group of friends.
“We were as shocked and saddened by this news as anyone. Of
course, we are sad for our son — but more importantly, we apologize to the
community he has hurt. We would also like to apologize to the — entire African
American community, University of Oklahoma student body and administration. Our
family has the responsibility to apologize, and also to seek forgiveness and
reconciliation. Our words will only go so far — as a family, we commit to
following our words with deeds.
“To our friends and family, thank you for your kind comments
and prayers. They are very comforting in this difficult time.
“We ask that the media and public please respect our family’s
privacy as we come together to heal and determine next steps.”
Bill Coletti, who is serving as spokesman for the family,
says they will say nothing further. He also says the family dispatched the
statement since media members had begun to ask about his role in the video.
Levi Pettit was a star golfer at Highland Park.
[Editor’s note: This story has been updated since
it was originally posted.]
University of Oklahoma President David Boren has expelled two Sigma Alpha Epsilon members captured on video singing a racist chant.
The two students were identified
in a statement as having played “a leadership role” during the bus
ride caught on video. And, says the president, more students are likely to be
expelled once they are identified.
One already has, and he’s from Dallas.
The Dallas Morning News has confirmed that recent Jesuit College
Preparatory School of Dallas graduate
Parker Rice, a former football player at the school, was the one seen leading
the chant. OU will not say if Rice was among those expelled, but Jesuit
officials addressed the revelation Tuesday morning without identifying the
19-year-old by name.
“In the recent video regarding OU and the SAE fraternity, it
appears that a graduate from Jesuit Dallas is leading the racist chant,” says a
message from Jesuit Dallas President Mike Earsing. “I am appalled by
the actions in the video and extremely hurt by the pain this has caused our
community. It is unconscionable and very sad that in 2015 we still live in a
society where this type of bigotry and racism takes place.”
A Jesuit spokesman would later identify Rice as one of the
fraternity members seen in the video.
The statement from Jesuit came hours after several Twitter
accounts, among them one linked to Anonymous, identified the leader as a Dallas
native.
Former classmates have taken to social media to defend Rice,
insisting he is “a good guy and NOT a racist.” But far more have suggested he
“better not go out in public for awhile,” in the words of one user. There have
been a few death threats as well.
The 19-year-old Rice has erased his social media presence;
so has most of his family, including his mother, who has deleted her Facebook
page. The father’s work phone number has been disconnected; the house number is
not accepting any further voice mail messages.
And a recently posted story about Rice and his brothers —
one of whom is also a SAE member at OU — was deleted this week from the Dallas
school’s website.
Rice’s father, Bob, a commercial Realtor, has deep ties to
North Dallas, where the family lives. He serves on the boards of the Town North
YMCA and North Dallas Chamber Baseball League and has volunteered in various
capacities for those organizations over the last two decades.
Catherine Bishop, OU’s vice president for public affairs,
tells The News via email the school will not name the students who were
expelled or involved in the video: “The record information is confidential
pursuant the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act.”
The SAE chapter was shuttered Monday by University of
Oklahoma president after a video surfaced Sunday night showing several young
men clad in tuxedos singing about how black students would never be allowed
into SAE. And the national Delta Delta Delta sorority
said it too is “cooperating fully” with the university, since several OU
Tri-Delts also appear to have been aboard the party bus.
Boren called the fraternity members “disgraceful” and deemed
their behavior “reprehensible.”
Former Dallas Cowboys and University of Oklahoma head
football coach Barry Switzer, an honorary SAE, issued a statement Tuesday
afternoon in which he said “this situation is unfortunate for the many innocent
people involved.”
Said Switzer, “As a long-time supporter of the University
and member of the SAE chapter, I know the majority of our students don’t
condone or participate in bigotry. These incidents are not a reflection of the
true spirit of our campus. I hope that we can begin to heal the wounds by
avoiding rhetoric that fuels the fire and instead spend more time thinking
about how we can collectively create positive relationships and interactions
among our campus family.”
Staff writer Naheed Rajwani contributed to this item.
University of Oklahoma
David
L. Boren is the president of the University
of Oklahoma, Daniel D. Boren’s
father, an advisory board member for Everytown
for Gun Safety, a director at the Bloomberg
Family Foundation, a member of the Bretton
Woods Committee, and was the Oklahoma
state government governor.
Note: Daniel D. Boren is
David L. Boren’s son, a director at
the National Rifle Association of
America (NRA), and was a member of the Oklahoma
House of Representatives.
Michael R.
Bloomberg is the founder of Everytown
for Gun Safety, the founder of the Bloomberg
Family Foundation, a co-chair for Mayors
Against Illegal Guns, the founder of Bloomberg
LP, and was a benefactor for the Harlem
Children's Zone.
John
J. Mack is an advisory board member for Everytown for Gun Safety, a director at the Bloomberg Family Foundation, and was a benefactor for the Harlem Children's Zone.
Foundation
to Promote Open Society was a funder for the Harlem Children's Zone, the Center
for American Progress, the Human
Rights First, and NAACP Legal
Defense & Educational Fund.
George Soros
was the chairman for the Foundation to Promote Open Society, a benefactor
for the Harlem Children's Zone, a
supporter for the Center for American
Progress, and is a member of the Bretton
Woods Committee.
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
Sigma Alpha Epsilon
has had nine deaths linked to drinking, drugs and hazing since 2006, more
than any other Greek organization, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.
Bloomberg News
is a division of Bloomberg LP.
Gene B. Sperling
was a contributing editor & columnist for the Bloomberg News, a senior fellow at the Center for American Progress, and is the assistant to the president
for economic policy for the Barack Obama
administration.
Melody
C. Barnes was the EVP for the Center
for American Progress, a principal for the Raben Group, a domestic policy council, director for the Barack Obama administration, is Barack Obama’s golf partner, and a senior
adviser for the Albright Stonebridge
Group.
Raben
Group is the lobby firm for Mayors
Against Illegal Guns, and the NAACP
Legal Defense & Educational Fund.
Richard R. Verma
was a fellow at the Center for American
Progress, an assistant secretary of state for the Barack Obama administration, a counselor for the Albright Stonebridge Group, a senior
counselor at Steptoe & Johnson LLP,
and a director at the Human Rights First.
Steptoe &
Johnson LLP is the lobby firm for the University
of Oklahoma.
James
D. Zirin was a director at the Human
Rights First, and is a senior counsel at Sidley Austin LLP.
Mark
A. Angelson was a director at the Human
Rights First, and a partner at Sidley
Austin LLP.
Sidley Austin
LLP was the lobby firm for the St.
Jude Children's Research Hospital.
Delta Delta Delta
Philanthropy
In 1999, Tri Delta partnered
with St. Jude Children's Research Hospital. St. Jude (through the fundraising branch, ALSAC)
assists Tri Delta chapters in planning philanthropy events that benefit the
children and subsidize research costs at St. Jude. Many chapters coordinate
fundraising activities such as pancake breakfasts and football tailgates on
their campuses each year. Since 1999, Tri Delta has raised more than $30
million for St. Jude.
Barack
Obama was an intern at Sidley Austin
LLP.
R.
Eden Martin is counsel at Sidley
Austin LLP, and the president of the Commercial
Club of Chicago.
Newton
N. Minow is a senior counsel at Sidley
Austin LLP, and a member of the Commercial
Club of Chicago.
Francis E. George
is a member of the Commercial Club of
Chicago, and a cardinal for the Roman
Catholic Church.
Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas
Jesuit College Preparatory School of Dallas (commonly referred to as Jesuit Dallas or Dallas
Jesuit) is a private, college-preparatory school for young men
under the direction of the Society of
Jesus and home to the Jesuit Dallas Museum in Dallas,
in the U.S. state
of Texas.
While Jesuit operates independently of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Dallas, it
exists and serves the Catholic community under the supervision of the bishop.
Charles J. O'Byrne
was a member of the Society of
Jesus, and is a friend of Caroline
B. Kennedy.
Caroline B.
Kennedy is a friend of Charles J.
O'Byrne, and was a director at the NAACP
Legal Defense & Educational Fund.
Vernon E. Jordan
Jr. is a senior director at the NAACP Legal Defense & Educational Fund, a senior counsel for Akin, Gump, Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP,
Valerie B. Jarrett’s great uncle, a director at the American Friends of Bilderberg
(think tank), and a 2008 Bilderberg conference participant (think tank).
Robert S. Strauss
was a partner at Akin, Gump, Strauss,
Hauer & Feld, LLP, and Theodore
H. Strauss’s brother.
Theodore H.
Strauss is Robert S. Strauss’s brother,
and was married to Annette Strauss.
Annette Strauss
was married to Theodore H. Strauss,
and the Dallas (TX) mayor.
Thomas G.
Loeffler is a partner at Akin, Gump,
Strauss, Hauer & Feld, LLP, a trustee at the University of Texas Law School Foundation, and was the chairman for
the University of Texas System.
Kay Bailey
Hutchison is a trustee at the University
of Texas Law School Foundation, and married to Ray Hutchison.
Ray
Hutchison is married to Kay Bailey
Hutchison, Dallas (TX) was his
client, and of counsel at Vinson &
Elkins.
Vinson & Elkins
was the lobby firm for the University of
Texas System.
Valerie B. Jarrett
is Vernon E. Jordan Jr’s great niece, the senior
adviser for the Barack Obama
administration, a member of the Commercial
Club of Chicago, and was a director at the Joyce Foundation.
Joyce Foundation
was a funder for the Mayors Against
Illegal Guns, the Brady Center to
Prevent Gun Violence, and the Bloomberg
Philanthropies.
Bloomberg
Philanthropies is an umbrella organization for the Bloomberg Family Foundation.
David
L. Boren is a director at the Bloomberg
Family Foundation, the president of the University of Oklahoma, Daniel
D. Boren’s father, an advisory board member for Everytown for Gun Safety, a member of the Bretton Woods Committee, and was the Oklahoma state government governor.
Daniel
D. Boren is David L. Boren’s
son, a director at the National Rifle
Association of America (NRA), and was a member of the Oklahoma House of Representatives.
Michael R.
Bloomberg is the founder of Everytown
for Gun Safety, the founder of the Bloomberg
Family Foundation, a co-chair for Mayors
Against Illegal Guns, the founder of Bloomberg
LP, and was a benefactor for the Harlem
Children's Zone.
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