LA city council president resigns after racist meeting audio leaked

Los Angeles city councilmember Nury Martinez resigned Wednesday following outrage over a leaked audio recording in which she used crude and racist language to describe her political rivals.

The audio, obtained by the Los Angeles Times, captures conversation from a private October 2021 meeting where Martinez says Mike Bonin, a white councilman, treats his young Black son as though he were a fashionable “accessory,” like a handbag.

At one point in the recording, Martinez calls Bonin “a little bitch” and referred to his son as “Parece changuito,” or “like a monkey.” She also disparaged Jews, Armenians and Oaxacans over the course of the discussion.

Martinez’s announcement comes after leaders from all levels, local to national, called on her to step down after the audio was published Sunday. She resigned as city council president on Monday and announced a leave of absence on Tuesday.

“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,” Martinez said in a statement. “While I take the time to look inwards and reflect, I ask that you give me space and privacy.”

Los Angeles Federation of Labor President Ron Herrera and city councilmembers Gil Cedillo and Kevin de Léon were also participants in the meeting with Martinez, where they vented their frustrations about redistricting and strategized about how to consolidate political power.

De Léon repeatedly referred to Bonin as the city council’s “fourth Black member” and complained, “Mike Bonin won't f---ing ever say peep about Latinos. He'll never say a f---ing word about us.”

He also agreed with Martinez’s “accessory” comment, comparing Bonin's handling of his son at the recent MLK Parade to "when Nury brings her Goyard bag or the Louis Vuitton bag."

“Su negrito, like on the side,” Martinez concurred, using a sometimes-demeaning Spanish term for a Black person.

Herrera resigned from his union leadership position on Monday over backlash to the recording. On Tuesday, the remaining leadership his organization had called upon the three remaining city council members to step down as well.