This wasn’t just a Watergate moment for a slice of L.A.'s political elite. For some Latino-centered media outlets, the recordings were an MRI that revealed some ugly masses long festering in the body politic: anti-Blackness and anti-Indigenous racism.
L.A. Latinos decry racist tape and fear it will set back leadership gains and cast them under a cloud of suspicion. Some say it exposed the need to have a conversation about colorism.
Muñoz surveyed the political surroundings: Half the city is Latino. Los Angeles County Sheriff Alex Villanueva is Latino. Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti, whose grandfather was born in Mexico, “is some kind of a Latino.” The three City Council members caught on the recordings — Martinez, Cedillo and de León — were Latinos.
“It has a record, especially with those communities that were vilified by these City Council members,” Benavides said. Olivera has been surprised to see the degree to which Oaxacans are being highlighted in national news outlets and on broadcast television. “Words in the Latino culture have a different meaning than they do in the English culture,” said former CNN correspondent Rick Sanchez, who is now based in south Florida.In an Oct. 12 episode of “Rick Sanchez News,” host Sanchez, a former CNN correspondent once based in Southern California, defended Martinez as the victim of “cancel culture” who he felt was unfairly recorded without her consent and taken out of context as a Latina.
Sanchez said that Martinez was “out of line in much of what she said” and that she said “stupid” things.
Australia Latest News, Australia Headlines
Similar News:You can also read news stories similar to this one that we have collected from other news sources.
Column: Racial coalitions define life in Los Angeles, and City Hall's divisive politics needs to catch upCouncilmembers Nury Martinez, Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo exposed corrupt racial politics.
Read more »
Nury Martinez’s resignation may quell fury but won't 'deal with Latino anti-Blackness,’ experts sayFocusing on whether a few politicians will resign, rather than on a culture that nurtures anti-Black racism within Latino communities, can obscure the prevalence of racist beliefs, experts told The Times.
Read more »
City Council Controversy: Everything we knowLeaked audio revealed President Nury Martinez and council members Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo involved in a racially-charged conversation targeting a variety of ethnicities on Sunday.
Read more »
L.A. City Council Members Stripped of Committee Roles Amid Racist Leak ScandalCity Council Members Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León have refused to step down, but were formally stripped of their committee assignments on issues including real estate development and homelessness on Monday.
Read more »
Concern over potential impact City Council scandal could have on Latino representationExperts have expressed concerns that the image left behind by councilmembers Martinez, Cedillo, De León and Labor Federation President Herrera could have a longstanding negative impact on the future of Latino representation.
Read more »
LA's Black-Latino tensions bared in City Council scandalCross-cultural coalitions have ruled Los Angeles politics for decades, helping elect both Black and Latino politicians to top leadership roles in the huge racially and ethnically diverse city.
Read more »