Black/Brown coalition chronicles: After Outcry Over Racist Remarks, Nury Martinez Resigns As LA City Council President, Takes Leave Of Absence

[theworldismine13]

After Outcry Over Racist Remarks, Nury Martinez Resigns As LA City Council President, Takes Leave Of Absence​

After Outcry Over Racist Remarks, Nury Martinez Resigns As LA City Council President, Takes Leave Of Absence

Nury Martinez was speaking with fellow Councilmembers Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo and L.A. County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera. They were recorded talking about their frustrations with redistricting efforts in the city.

laist.com

Council President Nury Martinez was part of a conversation where she called Mike Bonin's son a monkey in Spanish.
(Libby Denkmann
/



IN THIS ARTICLE

• What Exactly Happened?
• What Exactly Did They Say?
• Why Political Power Is At The Center Of This
• 'Individual Power Politics'
• Calls For Resignations
• How Do I Know Who Represents Me?

UPDATE

• Nury Martinez said Tuesday morning she was stepping away from her position to take a leave. That announcement came ahead of a regularly scheduled City Council meeting and as calls continued to grow for her to leave office. She said in the statement:
• "This has been one of the most difficult times of my life and I recognize this is entirely of my own making. At this moment, I need to take a leave of absence and take some time to have an honest and heartfelt conversation with my family, my constituents, and community leaders. I am so sorry to the residents of Council District 6, my colleagues, and the City of Los Angeles."
• We will have live coverage of Tuesday's City Council meeting, which is scheduled to start at 10 a.m. Watch here >

Nury Martinez announced her resignation this morning from her post as Los Angeles City Council President following the release on Sunday of recordings of racist remarks she made in a meeting last October during a conversation between two other Latino councilmembers and the L.A. Labor Federation president.
Here's her full statement, released shortly after 10 a.m.:

I take responsibility for what I said and there are no excuses for those comments. I’m so sorry.

I sincerely apologize to the people I hurt with my words: to my colleagues, their families, especially to Mike, Sean, and your son. As a mother, I know better and I am sorry. I am truly ashamed. I know this is the result of my own actions. I’m sorry to your entire family for putting you through this. As someone who believes deeply in the empowerment of communities of color, I recognize my comments undercut that goal. Going forward, reconciliation will be my priority.

I have already reached out to many of my Black colleagues and other Black leaders to express my regret in order for us to heal. I ask for forgiveness from my colleagues and from the residents of this city that I love so much. In the end, it is not my apologies that matter most; it will be the actions I take from this day forward. I hope that you will give me the opportunity to make amends. Therefore, effective immediately I am resigning as President of the Los Angeles City Council.

Support for LAist comes from

Become a sponsor
Among the most shocking comments she made during the conversation were directed toward Councilmember Mike Bonin's young son, who is Black. The comments also contained, as Councilmember Nithya Raman described it, "homophobic tropes." Martinez and others present also made derogatory comments about Indigenous Oaxacans.
Martinez did not say in her statement whether she would resign from office over the remarks. On Monday, prior to Martinez stepping down as president, Councilmember Monica Rodriguez released a statement on Twitter saying she will introduce a motion at Tuesday's council meeting calling for "the removal of the Council President." [We are seeking clarity on whether that mean from the council overall.]

​

 

[OfTheCross]

Most definitely a coalition. I saw plenty of Mexicans and all of alot of Black ppl protesting these people today at their Councilmeeting

 

[theworldismine13]

Most definitely a coalition. I saw plenty of Mexicans and all of alot of Black ppl protesting these people today at their Councilmeeting

 

[88m3]

@Mowgli still think you have bigger issues than nuclear bombs tbh

 

[theworldismine13]

 

[Mowgli]

@Mowgli still think you have bigger issues than nuclear bombs tbh

Speaking to the topic doesn't mean I have a big issue brother. The government seems to believe a potential threat exists. Let's trust the sources and be aware.

What's happening in l.a county is inevitable given the current apathy of black people towards boring politics.

I'm sure the same will happen out there starting in Nassau county.

 

[get these nets]

She's a complete piece of shyt.

 

[ADevilYouKhow]

Los Angeles City Council Live Updates: Anger Erupts Over Racist Remarks

A seething crowd disrupted a council meeting with shouted demands for the resignations of three members, whose racist conversation was captured on tape. Later in the day, President Biden joined the calls for them to leave office.

www.nytimes.com

 

[theworldismine13]

 

[Professor Emeritus]

Nury Martinez needs to be forced to resign by every avenue possible and should never represent any position in power in politics again.


I virtually never hear this "black-brown coalition" stuff except when people are being ignorant. Black people ally with those who support their interests, they don't blindly ally on the basis of the color of their skin. Brown people are somewhat more consistent in being on the same page as Black folk than White folk are, but no one has suggest that means, "Let's blindly support any Brown person out there".

Even the racist comments that were recorded had Martinez referring to certain Latinos in LA as Black allies.

What exactly are you shooting for, @theworldismine13? Not allying with anyone whether they represent the Black community's interests or not? Where is that going to lead?

 

[theworldismine13]

Nury Martinez needs to be forced to resign by every avenue possible and should never represent any position in power in politics again.


I virtually never hear this "black-brown coalition" stuff except when people are being ignorant. Black people ally with those who support their interests, they don't blindly ally on the basis of the color of their skin. Brown people are somewhat more consistent in being on the same page as Black folk than White folk are, but no one has suggest that means, "Let's blindly support any Brown person out there".

Even the racist comments that were recorded had Martinez referring to certain Latinos in LA as Black allies.

What exactly are you shooting for, @theworldismine13? Not allying with anyone whether they represent the Black community's interests or not? Where is that going to lead?

I'm shooting for black people to stop supporting illegal immigration and also understanding the anti black racism in Latin America which predates the existence of the United States

 

[Professor Emeritus]

I'm shooting for black people to stop supporting illegal immigration and also understanding the anti black racism in Latin America which predates the existence of the United States

Nury Martinez isn't an illegal immigrant nor can they vote breh. And if illegal immigration magically ended somehow, it would just boost the drive to get way, way more latino immigrants in the country by legal means, because those jobs still need to be worked and the labor market by citizens isn't remotely large enough to supply it on a year-to-year basis, and then those people COULD vote. I mean even easy jobs like fast food are hard as fukk to fill right now even with all the illegal immigrants in the country, and none of the folk turning down fast food jobs are gonna become gardeners or tomato pickers in a million years.


Not to mention that dems (and thus black politicians) literally only have any power now because of the Latino vote. Take out the Latino vote and you no longer have a Black senator much less one in the governing party, you don't' have a democratic president or Black folk in his cabinet, you don't a Black man in the #3 position in the House nor do you have Black folk in charge of 5 House committees and some 20 subcommittees.


Subtract the Latino vote, and conservative White people would run literally everything. I suspect that might actually be what you want though.

 

[NZA]

it's good that this happened. i think the complexity of the mexican caste system needed to be put into the public consciousness so voters and pundits can more accurately organize and strategize around certain kinds of latinos. i had learned as a kid there was a difference between "indios" (not politically correct, by the way) and other mexicans. they still often look almost the same to me but their politics are night and day. i think we have a lot of more indigenous identified or allied people voting in AZ and NV. california and texas has more fascist mexicans in their political process.

i think most of the "coalition" naivete that TWISM13 is addressing is probably expressed by black folk from back east or dems who are so MSNBC brained that they dont know anything they werent told by the NY times. anybody actually living here understands that our allies are situational and nuanced.

 

[ADevilYouKhow]

California to Investigate Los Angeles Redistricting Based on Leaked Remarks

Three City Council members and a labor leader were captured on a recording using racist and insulting terms. They were focused on changing district boundaries to benefit Latino council members.

www.nytimes.com

 

[get these nets]

From Monday




LA City Council members Mike Bonin, Mitch O'Farrell & Monica Rodriguez on "Tavis Smiley" + Commentary by Tavis Smiley

Tavis shares his thoughts on the breaking news out of LA City Council regarding Council President Nury Martinez and Councilmen Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo along with Latino labor leader Ron Herrera who were all caught on tape making "horrific racist slurs" about fellow Councilmember Mike Bonin's young Black son

. *Shortly after this commentary, Nury Martinez resigned as LA City Council president.


Los Angeles Councilman Mike Bonin joins Tavis to share his reaction to racist slurs made about his young Black son by Council President Nury Martinez and other Councilmembers.

Los Angeles Councilman Mitch O'Farrell joins Tavis to share his reaction

Los Angeles Councilwoman Monica Rodriguez joins Tavis to share her reaction