Young also commented on another post, saying, “Cincinnati has a problem and they always had a problem with the black citizens. Their (sic) animals and won’t change.”
His fellow trustees called for an emergency meeting Thursday evening to discuss the comments, with multiple trustees saying they were appalled by what Young said. When asked to read what he wrote by a member of the public, Young repeated his statements out loud, including the slur.
While his fellow trustees and members of the public called for his resignation, Young said that he apologized if he offended anyone, but he will not step down.
“I already made a public apology, I already made amends with my God, and if you have a problem with that, I can’t help it,” Young said.
One resident who spent the emergency meeting sitting outside on the tailgate of his truck said the comments made the entire town look bad.
“It makes us look like a bunch of redneck, KKK type people, and that’s just not true,” Dan York said.
During the meeting, his fellow trustees noted Young’s removal would have to be put on the ballot in November. Young is up for reelection.
Trustee Russ McGurrin said he hoped the people of the township would find a replacement for him.
“This is simply not acceptable in this day and age, and this will not be accepted in Ross Township,” McGurrin said.
Young said he would be back at their next regularly scheduled township meeting Aug. 7.
According to the Ross Township website, Young has lived in the township since 1978, previously working for Young & Bertke as well as serving as chief of the Ross Township EMS.
Young is not the only local official facing backlash for the comments they have made on the violence. Cincinnati City Council member Victoria Parks posted in the comments of a Facebook post that the people who were allegedly assaulted “begged for that beat down!”
With several people on social media calling on her to resign, we asked some Cincinnati city council members if they think Parks should face any consequences.
“I would never expect an elected leader, a colleague of mine, to make such damning, irresponsible statements,” fellow council member Meeka Owens said. “I don’t know if I can have an authentic conversation about safety and about how we move things forward in the city, with a colleague who is actually condoning violence.
Parks already announced in January that she will not run for re-election after this term. We have reached out to Parks but have not yet heard back.
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