The Los Angeles Times reported Sunday, that three members of L.A. City Council has been asked to resign after audio was leaked from last year’s private meeting. It contained offensive and racist remarks.
The original Reddit post with leaked audio was from the October 2021 meeting on redistricting. It featured Council President Nury Martinez and Federation president Ron Herrera. Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Leon were also present.
Martinez is heard making racist remarks about Mike Bonin’s child on the recording. Martinez mentions Bonin’s child misbehaving in a Martin Luther King Jr. parade many decades ago.
Bonin was described by the group as a white man and his adopted son was black.
De Leon intervened and said that Bonin was using the child as an accessory. Bonin was compared to a designer bag.
Martinez talked about the misbehavior committed by the child while riding on the same float in a Martin Luther King Jr. parade years ago.
Martinez said that Bonin’s child was in need of a beating.
At one point in the conversation, Martinez described Bonin’s son as “ese changuito,” or “that little monkey.”
Martinez Herrera, de Leon, and Herrera issued an apology statement after hearing excerpts from the audio shared by the Los Angeles Times. Cedillo stated that he doesn’t remember the conversation.
Martinez’s home was the site of protests this weekend.
“In a momentary condition of anger and frustration, I allowed the situation to get the best of me.” Martinez apologized for the comments.
De Leon stated that De Leon’s comments during the discussion were “wholly inappropriate.”
De Leon stated that he was sorry for appearing to condone, or even contribute to insensitive comments about a colleague’s family. ”
Herrera stated in a Sunday statement that there was no reason or excuse for the degrading comments made in that area. “They didn’t stop us, and we will carry that cross. ”
Bonin called on Martinez, Herrera, and de León to resign. In a statement, Bonin said, “The entirety of the recorded conversation … displayed a repeated and vulgar anti-Black sentiment, and a coordinated effort to weaken Black political representation in Los Angeles.”
