One of three Los Angeles City Councilmembers facing widespread calls to resign over a recorded conversation that included racist comments about a colleague's young son announced Wednesday that she will step down.
Nury Martinez announced the decision in a lengthy statement that did not directly address the firestorm that began over the weekend when the recording was made public and immediately led to demands for her resignation.
"It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home," she said in her 11-page statement, which touted accomplishments during her tenure.
"And last, to all little Latina girls across this city - I hope I’ve inspired you to dream beyond that which you can see," Martinez said in closing. "While I take the time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy."
Martinez said earlier this week she was taking a "leave of absence" from her seat on the council. Martinez, who assumed office in 2013 and became president in January 2020, earlier stepped down from her seat as council president.
The recorded October 2021 conversation at the center of the scandal involved Martinez, Councilmen Gil Cedillo and Kevin de León, and Ron Herrera, a top LA County labor official. The discussion about redistricting included several racist comments regarding the 2-year-old adopted Black son of Councilman Mike Bonin.
Among other comments in the conversation, Martinez belittled Bonin and criticized the child for his behavior at a Martin Luther King Jr. Day parade, saying Bonin's son was misbehaving on a float, which might have tipped over if she and the other women on the float didn't step in to "parent this kid."
U.S. & World
"They're raising him like a little white kid,'' Martinez said. "I was like, 'this kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then I'll bring him back.'"
Martinez also called the child "ese changuito,'' Spanish for "that little monkey."
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De León also criticized Bonin. "Mike Bonin won't f---ing ever say peep about Latinos. He'll never say a f---ing word about us."
De León also compared Bonin's handling of his son at the MLK Parade to "when Nury brings her little yard bag or the Louis Vuitton bag."
"Su negrito, like on the side,'' Martinez added, using a Spanish term for a Black person that's considered demeaning by many.
De León and Cedillo have rebuffed calls to resign. Both were initially at Tuesday's council meeting before leaving after discussions with other members. They were not at Wednesday's meeting.
Reaction: 'The Beginning of the End of This Nightmare'
Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti was one of several public officials who issued statements Wednesday in strong support of Martinez's resignation.
“Nury made the right decision, one that I realize is painful to her personally but unquestionably in the best interests of a city that I know she loves," Garcetti said. "Racism and hateful words cannot ever be overlooked by our community or within one’s self, and she needs the time and space to reflect, make amends, and move forward with her life. Her two former colleagues must arrive at the same decision soon, because Angelenos deserve a government focused squarely on meeting challenges in their neighborhoods that are too serious to risk a paralyzed City Council.”
Acting council president Mitch O'Farrell called the resignation a first step toward accountability.
“For Los Angeles to heal, and for its City Council to govern, there must be accountability," O'Farrell said. "The resignation of Councilmember Nury Martinez is the first, necessary step in that process. To that end, I repeat my call on Councilmembers de Leon and Cedillo to also resign. There is no other way forward."
Councilmember Curren Price called Martinez's decision a step toward ending a "nightmare."
"Nury Martinez has finally announced her resignation, signaling the beginning of the end of this nightmare that she, along with Kevin de León and Gil Cedillo created for our City," Price said Wednesday. "This sad chapter has left a permanent stain on our City Council, forever changing the face of LA politics."
The recording led to widespread calls from national, state and local leaders for Martinez and the other two councilmembers involved in the conversation to resign. President Biden joined that list on Tuesday.
Gov. Gavin Newsom called Martinez's resignation the right move.
"This is the right move," Newsom said. "Again, 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."
On Wednesday, the state's top prosecutor said he will look into the way Los Angeles conducts its redistricting process in the wake of the recording's release.
Also Wednesday, a second straight day of vocal protests at a Los Angeles City Council meeting forced the panel to cancel the meeting and move all agenda items to Friday's meeting. Activists shouted, booed and chanted inside and outside City Hall, forcing the start of the meeting to be delayed before it was finally adjourned without action an hour later.
“We are appalled, angry and absolutely disgusted that Nury Martinez attacked out son with horrific racist slurs, and talked about her desire to physically harm him,” Bonin said in an earlier statement. “It’s vile, abhorrent, and utterly disgraceful. The City Council needs to remove her as Council President immediately, and she needs to resign from office. Any parent reading her comments will know she is unfit for public office.”
Herrera resigned from his position as the head of the LA County Federation of Labor on Monday. The organization confirmed his resignation in a statement Tuesday morning, and called for de León, Cedillo and Martinez to "follow President Herrera’s example by immediately resigning as well."
It was not immediately clear who recorded audio of the conversation, which was first reported by the Los Angeles Times, about council redistricting that involved three members of the council and a county labor official. The audio, which appeared on Reddit, but was later removed from the site, also includes discussion of efforts to replace Councilman Mark Ridley-Thomas, who's been indicted on federal corruption charges.
Read Nury Martinez's Full Statement
It is with a broken heart that I resign my seat for Council District 6, the community I grew up in and my home.
When I ran in 2013, I wanted to see a change in my community and fight for my neighbors. That is what it has been about all along. No one expected me to win, but with the support of residents throughout the district I overcame that challenge and won the seat for Council District 6. I had the honor of serving in the role of a lifetime: being the representative for my neighbors.
Over the last 9 years, I’ve had the honor of working with communities across Los Angeles to fight for policies that uplift working families. For the families who can’t make it out of poverty, struggling everyday, you are the reason why I get up in the morning and do what I do. To represent and fight for the people who don’t have a voice. To the workers, the housekeepers, the nannies, to the people who get up to ride the bus to work in the morning. You have been the backbone of our city throughout this pandemic, but you were the backbone long before. I went to work for you. You have been my mission and my guiding principle.
The last, almost three years, have been unimaginably difficult. When I was elected President of the Council, I served for three months before the pandemic came crashing down. As the first Latina Council President, I strived to serve with compassion and to give a larger platform to the communities I felt had been left behind.
This Council has made a difference in the lives of millions across the city. We launched the largest renters relief program in the nation, brought equity in our city’s budget, created tenant protections, pushed for equality for women in the workplace, worked to phase out of oil, created a new department around families and community investment, created the largest guaranteed basic income program in the country, launched a new homeowner program, fought for human trafficking victims, and so much more. In Council District 6, we planned the revitalization of the Sepulveda Basin and the Van Nuys Civic Center, we distributed thousands of boxes at our monthly food and diaper giveaways, rented out laundromats for families in need and led the way in building housing for our homeless neighbors in the Valley.
To my constituents - Serving you has been a privilege and one that I don’t give up lightly. You are my neighbors, my friends, and the reason for this service. Throughout these 9 years, we’ve been able to work together to fix our parks, our streets, our sidewalks, and improve the overall quality of life for our neighborhoods. I hope you stay engaged and continue to fight for your fair share of the city’s resources. It’s hard to say goodbye, but please know that I was in this fight for you.
To my colleagues - I know we’ve had a hard couple of years and I know this work hasn’t always been easy for us. My only goal as Council President has been to champion a families first agenda that we can all be proud of. Each of you have worked hard on policies and programs that uplift Angelenos across this city. I hope that this work continues and that workers and working class families remain in the forefront of the priorities of this Council. While I leave with a heavy heart, know that I wish you all the best and I have faith in your strength to unite this city.
To the City employees - you have been my second family. From the start of my presidency, you rallied around me and embraced my families first agenda. You work hard every day and show up for this City’s residents. During the pandemic, when everyone stayed safe at home, you came to work, you delivered services, you became disaster workers, essential workers, and you got this city through our hardest times. I thank you and this city thanks you.
To my staff - I’m sorry that we’re ending it this way. This is no reflection on you. I know you all will continue to do great work and fight for our district. I’ll be cheering you on.
To my family, to my daughter, and to my mom - You have been my support system, my shoulder to cry on, and my biggest cheerleaders throughout my time in office. There have been many long nights, dinners missed, homework not checked over, dishes not washed because of this role that I took on. To my husband, my right hand man and my confidant, I cannot thank you enough for being my partner through this. To my daughter, I know I have fallen short recently of the expectations we have for our family. I vow to you that I will strive to be a better woman to make you proud. To my mom, you give me strength and you center me. I’ve only ever wanted to make you proud. To my sister, thank you for all you do, you have stepped in to take care of our family when I could not be there. To my dad in heaven, siempre serás mi inspiración.
And last, to all little Latina girls across this city - I hope I’ve inspired you to dream beyond that which you can see. While I take the time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy.
