Los Angeles City Council Speaker resigns over racist remarks

Los Angeles – The Speaker of the Los Angeles City Council resigned from his post on Monday after being heard making racist comments and other crude remarks in leaked recordings of conversations with other Latino leaders.

City Council President Nury Martinez apologized and expressed shame.

“At the end of the day, it’s not my apology that matters most. That will be the action I take from today. I hope you give me the opportunity to make amends,” she said in a statement. “Therefore, I am resigning as chairman of the Los Angeles City Council with immediate effect.”

The statement did not say she was resigning from parliament. She called and emailed her publicist, but she didn’t immediately respond.

In a taped conversation, Martinez said white legislator Mike Bonin treated his young black son as if he were an “accessory” and acted like a “palace changuito” or “like a monkey.” The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday.

Martinez also called Bonin a “little bitch” and mocked the Oaxacan at another point, The Times said.

“You see a lot of short, dark people,” Martinez said, referring to a particular neighborhood in the predominantly Hispanic Koreatown neighborhood.

“I don’t know where these people came from, I don’t know what village they came from, how they got here,” Martinez said, adding, “They are ugly.”

The contents of the recording rocked the political world just weeks before elections for the mayor’s office and several city council members.

Bonin and her husband Sean Arrian released a statement calling for the resignation of Martinez and two other council members involved.

“The entire recorded conversation repeatedly demonstrated vulgar anti-Black sentiment and a concerted effort to undermine Black political representation in Los Angeles,” they said.

The conversation was recorded in October 2021, and other attendees were City Councilmen Gil Cedillo and Kevin De Leon, and Los Angeles County Labor Federation President Ron Herrera, The Times reported. The general discussion was about frustration with the rezoning maps produced by the city council.

The Times reported that about an hour of audio was posted on Reddit by a now-suspended user, and it’s unclear who recorded the audio or if anyone else attended the meeting.

Martinez first issued an apology after the Times article appeared online.

“In a moment of intense frustration and anger, I do the best I can with the situation and take responsibility for these comments. I am sorry for that,” she said.

“The context of this conversation was concern about the reorganization process and its potential negative impact on communities of color,” she said. It speaks for itself, and I’ve worked hard to help this city get through the toughest times.”

Martinez, who describes her on the district’s website as a “glass ceiling-shattering leader who brings a profound life experience as the proud daughter of a working-class immigrant,” was elected to the council in 2013. Became the council’s first Latina president in 2020.

Former state legislator De Leon called him the council’s “fourth black member” at one point in a conversation with Bonin.

“Mike Bonin never peeps about Latinos. He never talks about us,” he said.

As Martinez likens Bonin’s son to an “accessory”, De Leon compares Bonin’s treatment of the child to “when Nury brings in a Goyard bag or a Louis Vuitton bag.” Looked.

“Su negrito, like a side,” Martinez replied.

In a statement, De Leon said the comments were inappropriate.

“I regret that I condoned and appeared to contribute further to certain insensitive comments made privately about my colleague and his family.” I took it.”

Sedillo issued a statement of apology on Monday.

“I didn’t participate in the conversation in question, but I did attend this meeting from time to time last year,” he said. “It’s my instinct to hold others accountable when they use derogatory or racist language. Obviously, I should have intervened.”

In an apology, labor official Herrera said there was “no excuse for the demeaning remarks made in that room” and “made no attempt to stop them,” The Times reported.

In a statement, Bonin and his husband said Martinez was unfit for public office.

“No child should be exposed to such racist, demeaning and inhumane comments, especially from public officials. It hurts to know that he will read these comments one day,” they said. rice field.

The council’s three black members issued a joint statement, saying, “It’s been a very dark day in LA politics for the Angelenos, who have faith in African Americans, the LGBTQ+ community, Indigenous peoples and local governments.” I was.

Aldermen Karen Price, Heather Hutt and Marquese Harris-Dawson said the “facade” had collapsed.

“This is 2022 and we will not turn a blind eye to the blatant prejudice, discrimination and racism on full display for the whole world to see,” they said.

The shockwave disrupted the mayoral election.

Martinez endorsed U.S. Congressman Karen Bass, who is seeking to become the first black woman to lead the nation’s second most populous city.

In a statement, Bass said, “Let me be clear about what these tapes are about. Horrible, anti-black racism.

“Everyone in the room has to be held accountable. We’ve been talking all day with Black and Latino leaders about how to make sure this doesn’t divide our city,” Bass added. rice field.

Her opponent, billionaire developer Rick Caruso, has called all three involved to step down from the council, saying it’s a “heartbreaking day for our proud and diverse city.” I asked.

“Now we must unite and strongly deny what has been said,” Caruso said in a statement.