DARTMOUTH, Mass. -- Massachusetts Congressman Barney Frank is apologizing for comments he made about the Trayvon Martin case at a weekend graduation ceremony.
Referring to the hooded academic robe that civil rights leader Hubie Jones received at the University of Massachusetts Dartmouth commencement on Sunday, the Democrat said "you now have a hoodie you can wear and no one will shoot at you."
The comment drew nervous laughter and groans from the crowd.
Martin was the Florida teen who was wearing a hoodie when he was shot and killed by a neighborhood watch activist.
Frank says he made the same joke at his own expense at three other graduation ceremonies.
He says it was meant to "ridicule the notion that a hooded sweatshirt is somehow sinister."
Jones says he didn't think Frank meant any harm.
Associated Press