Warren, in apology, cites America's 'long legacy' of 'racism and oppression' after women of color quit Nevada campaign

close

Video

Special Report Panel reacts to Elizabeth Warren's primary performance

Special Report Panel reacts to Elizabeth Warren's primary performance

Sen. Elizabeth Warren, D-Mass., apologized on Thursday after a report that six women of color who left her campaign in recent months felt marginalized by the staff, saying she is working to address the concerns but she's "also aware that racism and oppression have left a long legacy."

“I believe these women completely and without reservation, and I apologize that they have had a bad experience on this campaign,” Warren told reporters Thursday in Derry, N.H. “I take personal responsibility for this and I'm working with my team to address these concerns... It is important that we stay vigilant. These women have been courageous to come forward, and again, I apologize.”

During an interview on MSNBC, Warren reiterated her apology and  the problems that plagued her campaign staff actually stem from the country's history.

"I apologize personally that they had a bad experience on the campaign. I really work hard to try and build a campaign and a work environment where it's diverse and open and everyone is welcomed and celebrated and gets to bring their whole self to work every day," Warren said. "But I'm also aware that racism and oppression have left a long legacy. And it creates a toxicity where people, power structures, people take advantage of other people -- it's something for which we have to be constantly vigilant and constantly determined to do better."

She added: "I take responsibility for this and I'm working with my team to address these concerns."

TULSI GABBARD ORGANIZING PROTEST AT VENUE FOR CNN'S TOWN HALL AFTER BEING SNUBBED FROM EVENT

Politico reported Thursday that six campaign staffers have left Warren's 70-person Nevada team since November, with three of them saying they felt marginalized and that their grievances were not addressed despite taking them to their superiors or to human resources staff.

“During the time I was employed with Nevada for Warren, there was definitely something wrong with the culture,” Megan Lewis, a field organizer who joined the campaign in May and departed in December, told Politico. “I filed a complaint with HR, but the follow-up I received left me feeling as though I needed to make myself smaller or change who I was to fit into the office culture.”

Another field organizer who left the campaign, who did not want her name published for fear of reprisal, told the online outlet she felt like she was brought on the campaign “to literally bring color into the space but not the knowledge and voice that comes with it.”

CLICK HERE TO GET THE FOX NEWS APP

She added: “We all were routinely silenced and not given a meaningful chance on the campaign. Complaints, comments, advice and grievances were met with an earnest shake of the head and progressive buzzwords but not much else.”

A third former field organizer who was also granted anonymity said those descriptions matched her own experience.

Fox News' Andrew O'Reilly and Tara Prindiville contributed to this report.