Councilmembers planned to divide Koreatown, according to leaked discussion
Activists in the diverse and densely populated Koreatown are outraged after hearing the racist remarks from former Los Angeles City Council President Nury Martinez.
"I see a lot of little short dark people," said Martinez said in the leaked audio obtained by Knock L.A.
In the leaked audio, Councilmember Gil Cedillo specified "Oaxacan Koreans" as the "little ones" Martinez was referring to.
"The fact that she would target and disparage a particular set of any group is disgusting," said Jamie Penn, president of the Wilshire-Center Koreatown Neighborhood Council. "But such a large group that makes up such a representative of the population of Koreatown it's atrocious."
According to Penn, 200,000 people of Oaxacan descent live in' Koreatown as well as a large swathe of Asian Americans and African Americans.
Penn is one of a large number of people calling for the resignation of the three council members. Martinez resigned as City Council president Monday morning.
Also captured on the leaked audio — featuring Cedillo, Martinez, Councilmember Kevin de León and L.A. Labor Federation President Ron Herrara — is a discussion on how they could redistrict Koreatown.
"They specifically wanted to divide Koreatown so that the renters are not in the same district," Penn said. "And them intentionally trying to divide that political power of the very people that they're supposed to represent is just laughing in the face of democracy."
The idea is that Councilmember Nithya Raman, who is running for reelection in 2024, is not an asset to the Martinez-Cedillo-De León trio, according to them. They believe that Koreatown should be split so that Raman isn't given the majority of voters in Koreatown.
"What this conversation clearly, clearly points to for me is that we need an independent redistricting commission," said Raman. "What was being discussed throughout that entire discussion was conversations about individual political power and how to use the redistricting process to preserve it."