Nury Martinez Takes Leave Of Absence From City Council After Leaked Audio Scandal; L.A. County Labor Federation President Steps Down – Update

UPDATED, 9:16 AM: Nury Martinez said that she is taking a leave of absence from her Los Angeles City Council position after the disclosure of an audio recording in which she made racist remarks in conversation with three others.

Martinez notably did not resign from the council, despite widespread calls from Democratic leaders that she do so.

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“This has been one of the most difficult times of my life and I recognize this is entirely of my own making,” Martinez said in a statement. “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.”

Martinez resigned as Los Angeles City Council president on Monday, less than 24 hours after the Los Angeles Times posted excerpts from the leaked recording.

Political figures such as Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA), Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti and the two candidates on the ballot for mayor, Rick Caruso and Karen Bass, have called on Martinez to resign along with council members Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo.

Late on Monday, the fourth person heard in the audio, Ron Herrera, resigned his position as president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

PREVIOUSLY, 6:23 AM PT: Ron Herrera, the president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor who joined in the leaked audio conversation that has shaken City Hall leadership, has resigned.

Lorena Gonzalez Fletcher, head of the California Labor Federation, said in a statement on Twitter, “We are a movement of large organizations and deeply ingrained processes. But, we ultimately prioritize working class solidarity across all racial groups above all else. It’s now time for our labor movement to come together and start the hard work to heal.”

Herrera’s resignation follows Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez’s announcement that she was resigning from her post. But she retains her City Council office, as do other council members who participated in the conversation, including Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo.

SAG-AFTRA had joined the chorus of organizations and public officials calling on those engaged in the conversation to step down, while Hollywood Teamsters had threatened to pull its support from the labor federation should Herrera remain in its leadership.

PREVIOUSLY, 2:40 PM, Monday: Mayoral candidates Rick Caruso and Karen Bass have called for the three council members caught on tape in a conversation last year to resign their offices.

The current mayor, Eric Garcetti, also called for the elected officials to step down, joining a series of other prominent political figures, including Sen. Alex Padilla (D-CA) and Rep. Adam Schiff (D-CA) who also have urged them to leave.

Nury Martinez, the president of the Los Angeles City Council, stepped down from that post earlier on Monday, but not from her council seat.

The leaked audio was a conversation that included Martinez, council members Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo, as well as Ron Herrera, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. Martinez used a Spanish term to describe City Councilman Mike Bonin’s Black son as like a “monkey,” and she also mocked Oaxacan immigrants.

The audio has set off an unprecedented crisis in civic leadership, as City Hall already has been rocked by a series of corruption scandals. On Monday, civic activists said that the scandal was a symptom of larger problems in the city, including simmering racial tensions, as well as what has seemed to be a rudderless City Hall as Los Angeles faces a homelessness crisis and rising concerns over crime.

Caruso called for the three to resign on Monday morning, shortly after Martinez’s announcement.

“I am calling on City Council President Nury Martinez to do the right thing and immediately resign her office,” he said.  “I believe councilman Kevin DeLeon should do the same, as should my friend, Councilman Gill Cedillo.  I do believe that in their hearts they are better people than the vile comments we heard on that tape.”

Later on Monday, Bass also called for the three council members to resign, and also called for the departure of Herrera from his post. She said that on Tuesday, she would convene “a diverse group of leaders from across the city to lay out an action plan to move us toward unity and progress.”

“To move forward as a city, we must move past the politics of divide and conquer,” she said. “There is no place for division and hate in Los Angeles.”

A number of their council colleagues also have called for them to step down.

The tumult is only the latest to hit City Hall. Last year, Mark Ridley-Thomas was suspended as he faces federal bribery charges. Former Councilman José Huizar also is scheduled to go on trial next year in a separate case in which he has been charged with racketeering and bribery.

At the county level, there has been acrimony between the sheriff, Alex Villanueva, and one of his critics on the Board of Supervisers, Sheila Kuehl. His office executed a search warrant on her home last month, in what they said was part of an ongoing corruption investigation. But Kuehl told reporters that it was part of a “bogus, non investigation.”

On Monday, Kuehl also called for Martinez, Cedillo, de León, and Herrera to depart.

The tape was leaked on Reddit and excerpts were first published on Sunday by the Los Angeles Times.

Bonin wrote on Twitter later on Monday, “Still trying to process the past 2 days, but I know people are jockeying for council prez. My thoughts: We shouldn’t vote for anyone who didn’t call for resignations. And if they refuse to resign, anyone elected with those 3 votes is associating themselves with this disgrace.”

PREVIOUSLY, 10:23 AM: Nury Martinez resigned as Los Angeles City Council president on Monday, a day after the revelation of a leaked audio in which she used racist terms, including one about the son of one of her council colleagues.

Martinez remains in her City Council seat, even as some have called for her to resign from that post as well.

“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,” she said in a statement. “I hope that you will give me the opportunity to make amends.”

In the audio recording, taken of a conversation last year between Martinez, council members Kevin de Leon and Gil Cedillo, as well as Ron Herrera, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor. Martinez used a Spanish term to describe City Councilman Mike Bonin’s Black son as like a “monkey,” and she also mocked Oaxacan immigrants.

“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.”

Bonin called on Martinez to resign from her seat, along with De Leon.

Rick Caruso, running for mayor in the city’s November election, also called on Martinez and De Leon to resign from their offices, along with Cedillo. The latter endorsed Caruso.

“Being a leader means taking full responsibility for your actions,” Caruso said. “In this important moment for our city, anything short of resignation completely fails that test.”

Governor Gavin Newsom said that he was “encouraged that those involved in this have apologized and have begun to take responsibility for their actions.” But he did not call for resignations.

“These comments have no place in our state, or in our politics, and we must all model better behavior to live the values that so many of us fight every day to protect,” he said.

PREVIOUSLY: Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin called on fellow council members Nury Martinez and Kevin de Leon to resign after the revelation of a leaked audio in which Martinez makes racist remarks about Bonin’s son.

The audio — obtained by the Los Angeles Times here — has rocked the City Council, which in recent years already has been the focus of a series of corruption scandals. Chief of Police Michel Moore called it a “dark day for our City of Angels.”

In the audio, which surfaced on Reddit, Martinez, the council president, called Bonin’s Black son “parece changuito,” or like a monkey. She also can be heard saying, “They’re raising him like a little white kid which I was like, ‘This kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then I’ll bring him back.'” She also referred to Bonin as that “little bitch.”

De Leon appeared to agree with Martinez’s comparison of Bonin’s child to an accessory, noting it was like holding a Louis Vuitton handbag, according to the Times. He also appeared to refer to Black political power as the “Wizard of Oz” effect, suggesting that their representation is outsized because “they shout like they’re 250, when there’s a hundred of us.”

Martinez also was heard chiding George Gascon, the Los Angeles district attorney, saying, “He’s with the blacks.” She also was heard mocking Oaxacans.

The conversation took place last year, as Martinez, de Leon and Councilman Gil Cedillo were engaged in a chat about redistricting along with Ron Herrera, president of the Los Angeles County Federation of Labor.

Demonstrators appeared outside of Martinez’s home on Sunday night and played portions of the audio on a loud speaker.

Bonin also called for the resignation of Herrera and called out Cedillo for the “tacit acceptance” of the remarks.

“It hurts me that one of our son’s earliest encounters with overt racism comes from some of the most powerful public officials in Los Angeles,” Bonin said in a statement.

The audio revelations also have impacted the race for Los Angeles mayor, as Rick Caruso and Karen Bass each issued statements condemning the remarks. Caruso tried to tie the scandal to Bass herself, noting that “most people” in the conversation endorsed her. But Cedillo gave his support to Caruso.

“This entire situation shows that City Hall is fundamentally broken and dysfunctional,” Caruso said in a statement.

Bass said that what was heard on the recordings was “appalling, anti-Black racism.”

“Our city is in crisis. Homelessness is out of control, crime is on the rise, and Angelenos are being priced out of their hometown,” she said. “The challenges we face already threaten to tear us apart and, now, this hateful and shocking conversation among some of our city’s most powerful leaders could divide us even further.”

In a statement to media outlets, Martinez said: “In a moment of intense frustration and anger, I let the situation get the best of me and I hold myself accountable for these comments. For that I am sorry.”

She added, “The context of this conversation was concern over the redistricting process and concern about the potential negative impact it might have on communities of color.”

De Leon said, that he regrets “appearing to condone and even contribute to certain insensitive comments made about a colleague and his family in private. I’ve reached out to that colleague personally. On that day, I fell short of the expectations we set for our leaders — and I will hold myself to a higher standard.”

Herrera also issued an apology, saying, “There is no justification and no excuse for the vile remarks made in that room.”

Cedillo apologized for not intervening. “I failed in holding others and myself to the highest standard,” he said. “The hurtful and harmful remarks made about my colleague’s son were simply unacceptable. We choose public life, but our families should always be off limits and never part of the political discourse.”

Council members Paul Koretz and Nithya Raman also called for Martinez to resign. The state and local NAACP called on Martinez and all council members involved to step down.

The Los Angeles County Federation of Labor fired off a legal letter to the Times through its attorney, arguing that the conversation was recorded in violation of state privacy laws on the organization’s property. But according to the Times, its attorney Jeffrey Glasser responded by writing, “It is a fundamental principle in the United States that we do not prohibit or punish the receipt and publication of newsworthy information.”

The Reddit audio also was posted on the progressive site KnockLA.

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