LA City Council Members and Labor infected with racism

An unseen pandemic of racism has swept through Los Angeles' governing body leaving several council members scarred for life.

A tape surfaced last Sunday of a conversation from Oct. 21, 2021, implicating several “progressive” members of the council as nothing more than vulgar racists. They are City Council President Nury Martinez, and councilmembers Kevin de Leon and Gilbert Cedillo. The top labor leader in Los Angeles County, Ron Herrera, joined them in their infamy. All of them are subject to growing calls that they resign. Martinez announced Oct. 11 that she would take a leave of absence. That will not satisfy anyone.

All of the co-conspirators were Latinx. They sought to wield power in LA by forming a clique in opposition to Blacks and whites on the Council. Much of their ire was focused on a white Councilmember Mike Bonin, who has an adopted Black son, and often votes with the Blacks on the council. “He’s like a little monkey,” said Martinez. Bonin, who is gay, was subject to ridicule, including from De Leon said that Bonin’s handling of his child was like Martinez holding a Louis Vuitton handbag.

Bonin, who represents my hometown of Venice, surprised many voters by refusing to run for reelection. Now, it is clear that he was subjected to disrespectful treatment by his colleagues on the Council.

Anti-gay remarks were quickly followed by anti-immigrant slurs when Martinez referred to Oaxacans as “little short dark people.” “Tan feos,” she added: — “They’re ugly.”

Crusading County District Attorney, George Gascón was castigated by Martinez, “Fuck that guy…He’s with the Blacks.”

The Left Coast believes that the three Councilmembers should also resign. They have betrayed the support given to them by millions who want people judged by the content of their character, not by the color of their skin.

Labor keeps digging itself in deeper

Herrera resigned as Los Angeles County Federation of Labor (Fed) President at a Monday Board meeting, but the rot continues. It continues to focus on the “security breach” that informed the public of the cabal and racism in the City Council. The tape recording of the phone conference was apparently made at the LA County Federation of Labor, which was Ron Herrera’s office.

In an email on Sunday that was sent to some union affiliates, but not all, the Fed vowed to hunt down the person or persons responsible for the leak. Those who read the email said there was nothing about the racism that has shocked Angelenos throughout the city.

The Labor movement, especially the Fed, has always been a flunky for downtown development interests. But it’s gotten worse. The Fed’s spokesperson is Justin Wesson, son of former City Councilmember Herb Wesson, is the husband of Nury Martinez’s chief of staff, Alexis Wesson.

Apparently, even with Herrera’s resignation, the Fed has become the City Council’s bulldog, and is going after those whistleblowers who were responsible for informing the public. It’s time to open the files since the Fed has, by its actions, become an appendage of the LA City Council.

Instead of seeking to help voters become informed, a “County Fed” lawyer said the conversation was “recorded in violation of California’s privacy and recording laws on LA County Federation of Labor property.” If The Times published information from it, “it is condoning this illegal conduct,” she added.

The LA Times, which has publicized the contents of the tape in detail, responded that it had the right to print excerpts from the tape, “It is a fundamental principle in the United States that we do not prohibit or punish the receipt and publication of newsworthy information,” Times lawyer Jeffrey Glasser wrote.

Personal Note

I do not know Nury Martinez, but I have been friends with Gil Cedillo since we were both union executives, he with SEIU 660, and me with the LA Newspaper Guild.

We worked together, in 1994, to build a march and rally against Proposition 187, the anti-immigrant ballot initiative. It became one of the biggest demonstrations in LA history, but on election day, Prop. 187 was approved by voters. It was later invalidated by the courts.

We also socialized, and I used Gil as a source for a number of articles I wrote on LA politics. Fortunately, I declined to write an extensive biography that he wanted me to do when he was running for office.

I haven’t seen him much since he became a Councilmember (after several years in the state legislature) and I don’t know what his statements were on the tape since I failed to recognize his voice. However, he did participate in what was a cabal organized to seek power at the expense of others. The California Brown Act prohibits small groups such as this from meeting to discuss pending official business. They may be in violation of this statute since they did discuss Heather Hutt’s appointment to the council. (Hutt has called for their resignations).

I am very disappointed with Kevin De Leon. I supported him for Mayor in the primary campaign and election. I thought he would be more of a fighter to change “business as usual,” at City Hall. I first became aware of him when he had the chutzpah to run against do-nothing Senator Dianne Feinstein.

What is it about power that changes committed activists into self-serving, and racist, bureaucrats? What ever it is, dear readers, stay away from it. I ran for office on the Peace and Freedom Party ticket a few years ago. In my campaigns opposing Colonel Ted Lieu for State Assembly and Jane Harman for Congress, I noticed that there seemed to be a personality flaw that affected most of the other candidates. I’ve since decided that they were sociopaths. They thrived on being the center of attention. They got high on the whiff of power, even when they lost. I believe this is what happened to these three “leftist” leaders. How lucky they will be to step down, and become “just folks,” like the rest of us.

But beware, in every town and city on the left coast, there are more just like them. They are the ones with weak principles and a lust for power. They don’t belong in leadership positions, but they will do anything to achieve exalted elected positions, beginning with Dog Catcher.

Instead of being enamored by their glow and charm, we should be asking them hard questions like how many books they’ve read in the last six months, what is their theory of politics, who have they helped when they didn’t have to, and who have they stood up for those persons were too weak to help themselves.

We need to remind them that they work for us, and the job is temporary.