Georgia gov says he 'misspoke' with 'colored people' remark [View all]

ATLANTA (AP) -- Georgia Gov. Nathan Deal says he made a mistake in using the phrase "colored people" during a speech last month, but he's standing by his argument that civil rights groups should support a constitutional amendment allowing the state to take over low-performing schools.

WAGA-TV (http://bit.ly/2epZIkh ) reported Deal's remarks on Wednesday. In video obtained by the station, Deal defends the proposal against critics during an Oct. 3 speech to technical college educators in Savannah.

"The irony of some of the groups who are opposing doing something to help these minority children is beyond my logic," Deal said. "If you want to advance the state of colored people, start with their children."

In a later interview with the station, Deal said he was referring to the NAACP, which has joined teacher organizations and others urging people to vote against the amendment. The organization's full name is the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, but "colored" has become a derogatory term in the decades since the NAACP's founding in 1909.

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