Anthony Federico, the ESPN employee fired for his late-night Jeremy Lin headline “Chink in the Armor,” has already apologized and insisted his use of the cliché was “an honest mistake,” not a racist pun about Asians. But today he took to Twitter to publish his first full statement on the incident, again apologizing profusely, but also vouching for his character. “My words may have hurt people in that moment but my actions have always helped people,” he writes. “If those who vilify me would take a deeper look at my life they would see that I am the exact opposite of how some are portraying me.”
They would see that on the day of the incident I got a call from a friend – who happens to be homeless – and rushed to his aid. He was collapsed on the side of the road due to exposure and hunger. They would see how I picked him up and got him a hotel room and fed him. They would see I used my vacation time last year to volunteer in the orphanages of Haiti. They would see how I ‘adopted’ an elderly Alzheimer’s patient and visited him every week for a year. They would see that every winter I organize a coat drive for those less fortunate in New Haven. They would see how I raised $10,000 for a friend in need when his kids were born four months premature. They would see how I have worked in soup kitchens and convalescent homes since I was a kid. They would see my actions speak louder than my words. They would see that these acts were not done for my glory, but for God’s. They would see that each day I live and will continue to live a life of joy and service.
It never has been or will be my intention to hurt anyone.
His full statement can be read here. It’s clear that Federico has been shaken by the intense public scrutiny and the loss of the job he held for five years. After all this, it’s hard to believe the headline was malicious, or anything more than careless; his intentions seem pure, even if his self-defense is a bit overwrought. “I wrote it and now I take responsibility for it,” says Federico. “My solace in this is that ‘all things work together for good for those who love the Lord.’ I praise God equally in the good times and the bad times.”
