Protests in LA over racist slurs of council members

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Following the audio leak of Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez's racist remarks, US President Joe Biden expressed that Martinez and the other council members should resign, according to the White House on Tuesday. 

White House Press Secretary Karine Jean-Pierre took the chance to take a jab at Republicans, namely those who are Trump supporters, to say, "Here's the difference between Democrats and Republicans: When a Democrat says something racist or antisemitic ... we hold Democrats accountable."

"When a MAGA Republican says something racist and or antisemitic, they are embraced by cheering crowds and become celebrated and sought after," Jean-Pierre cried out.

Martinez submitted her resignation from the council presidency on Monday after leaked audio a day earlier revealed her verbal attacks and racist behavior against African-Americans and Indigenous Mexicans.

The audio of Martinez, the city's first Latina council president, was a recording of her speaking last year to fellow council members Kevin De Leon and Gil Cedillo and Los Angeles County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera, which spread quickly when The Los Angeles Times soon picked it up. 

Martinez labeled Councilman Mike Bonin's son as a “monkey”, referenced another council member as being “with the Blacks,” and ridiculed indigenous Oaxacans who live in Koreatown calling them “a lot of little short dark people” and “ugly".

Bonin expressed through an emotional state on Tuesday, "I take a lot of hits, but my son?", after he stated his perception of the comments by colleagues as unforgivable. Cedillo and de Leon issued an apology but have not resigned.

In light of the exposed leak, protesters took to the streets of Los Angeles on Tuesday disrupting the council meeting at the time, chanting "fuera" ("out" in Spanish), "we're with the Blacks" and "shut it down." Some even gathered outside Martinez's residence. 

Racism in the US is not a topic nor a headline, it is a description of what the US political system is and condones. For long, African-Americans, Latinos, and Indigenous peoples in the US are bound to white supremacist and racist ideologies nurtured by the abuse of power in legislation and law enforcement.

African-Americans are unfortunately living in a cradle-to-prison path in the US whereby they are born into a system that labels them from birth as 'criminal'. Statistics show that African-Americans are more likely to be falsely convicted 7 times more than white Americans before being exonerated, as they account for 53% of the 3,200 incarcerated as of August 2022.