A Los Angeles city councilman refused to resign Wednesday after uproar over an audio recording where he allegedly participated in making racist comments.
Councilman Kevin de Leon said he still wants to work on the city’s homelessness problem and will not be resigning, according to the Associated Press.
Los Angeles Councilman Kevin de Leon told Univision in an interview that he will not resign amid the uproar over a leaked tape that revealed he participated in a meeting in which Latino officials made crude, racist remarks. https://t.co/kPmZCVfv5J
— The Associated Press (@AP) October 19, 2022
“I will not resign because there is a lot of work ahead,” de Leon said, according to the outlet. “I feel very bad, I feel very sorry for the damage, for the wounds that exist today in our communities.”
The recording reportedly depicted then-Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez criticizing Los Angeles City Councilman Mike Bonin for raising his black son as if he were an “accessory,” according to the Los Angeles Times. De Leon allegedly compared a situation involving Bonin’s son to Martinez holding a Louis Vuitton bag. (RELATED: Liberal Media Downplays That Disgraced LA City Council President Is A Democrat)
“Kevin de Leon has the opportunity to atone and seek forgiveness one day from all of Los Angeles, and from the Black community and from my son in particular,” Bonin said in a statement on Twitter. “But that starts with his resignation from the City Council.”
“No matter what he says today, his comments on that tape make clear he is unfit for office in this city,” Bonin added.
The audio recording, from an October 2021 meeting was first leaked on Reddit. Martinez resigned Oct. 12 after President Joe Biden urged her and other council members to resign Oct. 11, according to the LA Times.