By T.A. Hendrickson
It is Day Two of the latest and arguably ugliest scandal ever to engulf the Los Angeles City Council and Councilmembers Nury Martinez, Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo are clinging to their council seats. But calls for their resignations keep multiplying, including one this afternoon from President Joe Biden.
Residents of Northeast Los Angeles – who are represented by De León (Council District 14) and Cedillo (CD 1) – will have a chance to register their views at upcoming neighborhood council meetings and a local candidate forum.
- Tonight, Oct. 11, starting at 7 p.m., both the Historic Highland Park Neighborhood Council and the Glassell Park Neighborhood Council will hold Zoom meetings. The agendas for the meetings were set before the scandal erupted, so there are no specific items calling for discussion or action regarding the scandal, though both agendas include slots for general public comment on non-agenda items. (Click here and then click on “Special Meeting Agenda” for details on how to participate in the Highland Park meeting. Click here for details on participating in the Glassell Park meeting.
- On Thursday, Oct. 13, the Historic Highland Park Neighborhood Council will host a candidate forum, including Congressman Jimmy Gomez, State Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo and their opponents, David Kim and Mia Livas Porter, respectively, as well as the two candidates for L.A. Unified School District Board Seat #2, Rocio Rivas and Maria Brenes. (Scroll down at this link for details on the candidate forum.)
- The Eagle Rock Neighborhood Council has called a special meeting on Monday, Oct. 17 starting at 7 p.m. to discuss whether to issue a letter demanding the resignations of Martinez, De León and Cedillo. A special meeting is necessary because the next regularly scheduled meeting of the ERNC is not until Nov. 1. (Use this link to join the meeting online.)
To recap: Martinez, De León, Cedillo and Ron Herrera, a labor union official who resigned on Monday, were heard on a leaked audio recording engaging in a roughly hour-long conversation rife with profanity-laced racial slurs. Martinez, the most offensive of the three, also indulged in homophobic slurs, referring to Councilmembers Mike Bonin and Mitch O’Farrell, who are gay, as a “little bitch,” and a “diva,” respectively. Martinez has stepped down from the presidency of the City Council and is now on a leave of absence. All three have issued apologies.
All of the elected officials representing Northeast L.A. have called for Martinez, De León and Cedillo to resign, including U.S. Congressman Jimmy Gomez, State Senator Maria Elena Durazo, State Assemblymember Wendy Carrillo, L.A. County Supervisor Hilda Solis and Councilmember-elect Eunisses Hernandez (CD 1). The challengers in upcoming elections to represent NELA in the U.S. Congress and State Assembly — David Kim and Mia Livas Porter — have also called for resignations.
In addition to President Biden, the list of those calling for the resignations of Martinez, De León and Cedillo also includes Mayor Eric Garcetti, U.S. Senator Alex Padilla, Councilmembers Mike Bonin, Marqueece Harris-Dawson, Heather Hutt, Mitch O’Farrell and Nithya Raman, L.A. mayoral candidates Karen Bass and Rick Caruso, the Los Angeles Times Editorial Board and numerous labor union locals.
Whatever Martinez, De León and Cedillo ultimately do, it’s hard to see how they will ever overcome the harm they have done to their relationships with colleagues and constituents and to their own political careers.
Their racism and classism has been felt long before this audio was released. They sold our communities out to the highest kickbackers with no regard for tenants, unhoused & other vulnerable populations. They represent white supremacy and should be dishonorably discharged with no benefits, no pension, nothing. Fend for themselves as they’ve forced us to do all these years.
After they resign, their constituents should demand a special election. It’s not fair to disenfranchise the voters by not letting them elect their own representatives.
Nury Martinez is a Brown Racist against blacks and all othet races.
She is not white.
meh — when are they gonna lock up Joey Weezer?
he was a HORRIBLE councilman
We knew Kevin de Leon is a weasel, and now we know he is racist toward black children, and likes to laugh along with racist talk against indigenous Mexicans, armenians, white councilmembers, and homophobic jabs. In his short 2-year tenure, He has been a worse City Councilman than Huizar, and that says alot. Kevin de Leon must resign Today! Get out of the way let us elect an ethical councilmember who is ready to heal this racist divide, stop the tribalism and work for all Angelenos. We need a councilmember who will actually WORK to solve problems, and who will LISTEN to their constituents. ps. De Leon’s staff is terrible also – they are a brick wall to any communication to our Councilman. All of you go away.
Yes Kevin De Leon has always been a weasel, now a racist. He needs to go. He has accumulated enough pensions to set himself up in retirement. Nury Martinez the pride of San Fernando High and she was a school board member!?!
I have no comment about KDL, but have to disagree about his staff’s responsiveness to constituents. At least in the Northeast office, I’ve had a lot of thoughtful and effective responses to a lot of my concerns, though I’m not always in agreement with their point of view.
Cedillo and staff have effectively resigned from office. Since August when a group of seniors attempted to resume services at the Glassell Park Senior Center we found that his website has been scrubbed of staff info and his field office at the Glassell Park Senior Center was vacated. Staff did emerge at a rally at LA 27 Restaurant in CD1 in support of Caruso and are likely still on City payroll, an ethics violation if they campaign for anyone.
Councilmember Cedillo should not be lumped in with racist Nury Martinez. Cedillo did nothing wrong. He said nothing wrong. We do not know if he was even in the same room when racist comments were made.
But Cedillo said nothing wrong. Cedillo has fought his whole life for civil rights for all. It is absolutely insane to call this very respectable man a racist. That is crazy. It is very unfair the way Cedillo is being treated.
Anyone that knows Cedillo also knows his heart.
at least these Latinos are equal opportunity racists. Blacks, Oaxacans, gays, jews, whites, and armenians! They should have resigned already, and their pensions removed. I’m sure they broke the Brown Act.
They? Who are they? Cedillo did not do anything wrong!
It doesn’t matter. He’s accomplished and effective and that’s why they want him gone. Who made the tape? And why was it leaked now?
Bass said that she was happy that Bonta, the AG was conducting an investigation. Can he investigate why Hispanics are chronically underrepresented on the City Council, and the Board of Supervisors? We should have about seven seats on the City Council. There are five people on the Board of Supervisors and Hispanics have one seat. Asians have none. How is that right?