'I do apologize': GOP congressman says blackface photos were to 'pay homage' to pop star

A Republican congressman who was once kicked out of Michael Jackson’s molestation trial said Thursday night that his desire to “pay homage” to the pop star inspired him to don blackface for a Halloween party during his college days.

“I certainly understand why people would be upset or offended by it, and for that, I’m sorry,” Rep. Mike Lawler (R-NY) said Thursday on CNN. “There was no ill intent. There was no effort to malign or make fun of or disparage Black Americans. It was really an effort to pay homage to somebody who was a musical idol for me.”

The comments came hours after The New York Times reported on photos it said were taken around October 2006 showing Lawler sporting a Jackson costume and wearing blackface. According to the publication, the photos show Lawler, then 20, at a college social gathering wearing a black shirt and a red jacket, with him striking a signature Jackson dance pose in another.

“Obviously, I can't change what happened 18 years ago,” he told CNN’s Kaitlan Collins on her show “The Source,” adding that it is “not something I would do today.”

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Lawler did not dispute the photos and repeatedly apologized for the past decision, insisting that while he understands why people would be offended by the photos, they were not “what I think could truly be construed as blackface.”

“I think there is a stark difference between dressing up for Halloween and paying homage to somebody you like and respect, versus dressing up in blackface to demean and dehumanize black people. That’s obviously not what I was doing there.”

Collins noted the “ugly history” of blackface before noting that Lawler's suburban district includes 59,000 Black people.

“I certainly understand how someone would take offense,” he said. “And for that I do apologize.”

Watch the clip below or at this link.