Nury Martinez resigned Monday as president of the Los Angeles City Council following the release of an audio recording from October 2021 in which she made multiple racist comments. Her comments sparked widespread outrage and protests calling for her resignation. It is unclear if she will hold onto her role as a council member.
As she announced her resignation, Martinez released a statement in which she said, “I take responsibility for what I said and there are no excuses for those comments. I’m so sorry.”
On Sunday, a now-deleted Reddit user posted a recording in which council members Nury Martinez, Gil Cedillo, and Kevin de León and L.A. County Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera made racist comments during a conversation about the redistricting process. The members expressed a desire to retain the economic advantages provided by USC and the Van Nuys Airport in heavily Latinx districts. Although Latinx residents are roughly half of the city’s population, they are not represented as such in city council districts, which has repeatedly caused upset.
Martinez made racist comments about council member Mike Bonin’s Black son. She was additionally recorded saying racist comments related to District Attorney George Gascón and discussing the fate of council member Mark Ridley-Thomas whose indictment affected his seat. Council member de León, whom Bonin encouraged to resign, was also recorded contributing to the racist remarks, comparing Bonin’s son to a fashion accessory. He released a statement on Sunday in which he apologized for the “comments made in the context of this meeting that are wholly inappropriate.”
Ron Herrera apologized for his contribution to the conversation, in which he spoke about appointing council members who would support Cedillo, Martinez and de León. Despite his statement, a lawyer representing the L.A. County Federation of Labor said that the recording of the conversation violated California law. The future of the council members’ seats remains unclear, but this recording could have consequences for the November election since Martinez has made multiple endorsements, including mayoral candidate U.S. Representative Karen Bass.