Ryan Lochte Sister Megan Lochte Apologizes for Racist Video

Olympic swimmer Ryan Lochte may be a national treasure, but his family is a bit of an embarrassment. Last week, a 2008 video made its way around the internet, in which Ryan's sister Megan spends four-and-a-half minutes making fun of Chinese people. She has since apologized for the video -- but is the damage already done? Watch the controversial clip below (warning: offensive language).

In the clip, an excerpt from a Maryland late-night comedy talk show called Closing Time, Megan humorously describes her trip to the Beijing Olympics. In the process, she repeatedly uses the anti-Asian slur "chink," while making fun of Chinese food, driving, politics and manners.

Following the backlash from the video, Ryan Lochte's sister released a statement explaining that her racist rant was supposed to be satire.

"This was not a real interview, and it in no way reflects my true feelings or persona whatsoever," Megan told Us Weekly on Saturday. "The intent was to make fun of the ignorance of people who actually do not have an understanding of other cultures and speak in racist ways. The skit and my character were supposed to be making fun of ignorance, not any culture or class of people."

Lochte, who majored in Multicultural Marketing at the University of Maryland, acknowledged that her "skit" may be offensive when taken out of context.

"I do see how it was highly offensive to the viewer, but as seen by today's widespread outrage, it clearly did increase awareness of the ignorance of those who are racist," she continued in her statement. "While the intent of the script was to shed light on cultural ignorance, I realize that in application it did offend people, and for that I apologize."

The controversy is reminiscent of the fallout that Sarah Silverman faced in 2001, after using the word "chink" as a punchline on Late Night with Conan O'Brien. 

Ryan Lochte narrowly avoided a scandal himself recently, when he was partying at the same Las Vegas hotel as Prince Harry. Luckily, he didn't go upstairs to the suite where a naked billiards game was taking place.

"I'm kind of happy (I wasn't at Harry's party). I don’t need that," Lochte told the Today show.

 

Source: http://www.ivillage.com/ryan-lochte-sister-megan-lochte-apologizes-racist-video/1-a-483030

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