Mayoral candidate Oscar Rodriguez issued an apology this week after using the N-word during a packed public event at the Lensic Performing Arts Center in downtown Santa Fe while recounting a traumatic experience in his youth.

A teacher had said the word to him, he told the crowd Monday evening.

“I know the power of that wicked word and the hurt it can cause,” Rodriguez said in a statement to supporters two days later.

“Hearing it said out loud not only retraumatized me but deepened the pain because it hurt others as well. I deeply regret that in telling my story, I released that word and brought others into my trauma,” he said. “For that, I am deeply sorry.”

His use of the racial slur drew criticism from Black residents and some of his rivals, with the ensuing controversy engulfing his

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