Gothamist
A non-profit newsroom, powered by WNYC.
Gothamist
Listen Live
News
Rev. Al Sharpton Doesn't Regret, Won't Apologize For Tawana Brawley Incident
By
Jen Chung
Published May 20, 2011
Modified May 20, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
Never miss a story
Email address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .
By
Jen Chung
Published May 20, 2011
Modified May 20, 2011
Share
FacebookTwitterRedditEmail
We rely on your support to make local news available to all
Make your contribution now and help Gothamist thrive in 2026. Donate today
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
This Sunday, the Rev. Al Sharpton will be featured on 60 Minutes. Telling interviewer Lesley Stahl to call him a "refined agitator" (hey, he has been working with Mayor Bloomberg and Newt Gingrich), he says, "I've learned to pick my fights and also to be more strategic about my fight plan. Doesn't mean it's not the same fight, but it means I'm a different and I'm a more seasoned fighter." Of course, one of the main things Stahl wants to talk about is the Tawana Brawley incident.
As we wrote on the 20th anniversary of the incident, in 1987, a 15-year-old woman named Tawana Brawley "was found discovered partially nude, smeared with feces, and had racial epithets scrawled on her body" in Wappinger Falls, NY. "Brawley claimed that she had been abducted by a group of white men who raped her repeatedly and that at least one of them identified himself as a police officer. District Attorney Steven Pagones was eventually accused as one of her assailants. Police investigated the incident, but no charges were ever filed when conflicting statements and physical evidence seemed to contradict Brawley's account of her ordeal. (Brawley has since insisted that she is not a liar and was telling the truth.)"
During the allegations, Sharpton led protests against the police and accused government officials of covering up the alleged rape, becoming a national figure as a result. He was eventually found liable for making defamatory statements about Pagones. Now, when Stahl tells Sharpton why he hasn't apologized, "I'll be honest with you. I have thought about that a million times. I just don't believe they treated that case fair." And when Stahl says if she knew that she made false statements like that, she'd apologize, to which Sharpton replies, "I think you're right. I think the operative word is: if you knew that. I don't know that."
Tagged
al sharpton
race tension
rev al sharpton
Tawana Brawley
Jen Chung
Jen Chung is a former WNYC and Gothamist editor.
Read more
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
MORE news
Chinatown residents file lawsuit against after-hours construction on new 'mega jail'
Residents cite sleep disruption and dust-induced illness from nearly ‘round the clock’ construction.
By
Arya Sundaram
Published Oct 24, 2026 at 5:25 p.m. ET
Peepapalooza: NYC is heading to the Hudson Valley to watch the leaves
Don't be surprised if you run into someone from your building in Beacon.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
Sean Carlson
News
Peepapalooza: NYC is heading to the Hudson Valley to watch the leaves
Don't be surprised if you run into someone from your building in Beacon.
By
Elizabeth Shwe
and
Sean Carlson
NYPD: Officer shot, injured knife-wielding woman during ‘chaotic’ night at Queens home
By
Ryan Kost
3 slates vying to run Jersey City school board as city stares down major tax hikes
By
Michael Sol Warren
5 men charged with trespassing in 2 Manhattan manhole cases
By
Charles Lane
Never miss a story
Catch up on the most important headlines with a roundup of essential NYC stories, delivered to your inbox daily.
Sign upEmail address
By submitting your information, you're agreeing to receive communications from New York Public Radio in accordance with our Terms .