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LA Council Prez Nury Martinez calls Mike Bonin’s Black toddler son 'that little monkey' in racist rant

In a leaked recording from 2021, Nury Martinez and other council members were heard making racist remarks, going as far to call the child 'su negrito'

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: Democrats on the Los Angeles City Council have been accused of making racist remarks about a colleague’s Black child. In a leaked audio recording, Council President Nury Martinez was heard referring to her colleague Mike Bonin’s son as “ese changito,” which means “that little monkey” in Spanish, The Los Angeles Times reported. Martinez, who is Latina, was also heard saying Bonin was raising her child “like a little white kid". 

“I was like, this kid needs a beatdown. Let me take him around the corner and then I’ll bring him back,” the city council president said. She referred to the toddler as “su negrito," which is a derogatory term for a black person in Spanish. In the conversation, which is about an hour long, she called Bonin, who is white, "that little b***h".

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Kevin de León, a member of the city council who unsuccessfully ran for LA mayor and California senate, was caught saying in the recording that Bonin, also a Democrat, treated his child like an accessory. He said the councilman handled his child similar to “when Nury brings her little yard bag or the Louis Vuitton bag," a report said. 

These comments were made while the council members were discussing redistricting during a meeting in October 2021. Also involved in the conversation were nother councilman, Gil Cedillo, and a top LA County labor official. The audio was initially posted on Reddit by a user who has now been suspended. It is unclear who recorded it. 

“Wow, you know it happens, but when you actually hear it, it’s unbelievable,” the user said in text that accompanied the audio. “The labor movement is in bed with City Hall.” Meanwhile, Bonin said, "I’m disgusted and angry and heartsick," adding that he us still “digesting” the remarks.

“It’s fair game to attack me but my son?” Bonin said, adding, “You have to be pretty petty and insecure and venomous to attack a child. He wasn’t even three years old. Other than that, I’m speechless.” Bonin also released a statement on his and his family's behalf on Twitter, condemning what happened. "“We are appalled, angry and absolutely disgusted that Nury Martinez attacked out son with horrific racist slurs, and talked about her desire to physically harm him,” Bonin wrote. “It’s vile, abhorrent, and utterly disgraceful. The City Council needs to remove her as Council President immediately, and she needs to resign from office. Any parent reading her comments will know she is unfit for public office.”

Their statement continued, “We love our son, a beautiful, joyful child, and our family is hurting today. No child should ever be subjected to such racist, mean and dehumanizing comments, especially from a public official. It is painful to know he will someday read these comments. … It hurts that one of our son’s earliest encounters with overt racism comes from some of the most powerful public officials in Los Angeles. As parents of a Black child, we condemn the entirety of the recorded conversation, which displayed a repeated and vulgar anti-Black sentiment, and a coordinated effort to weaken Black political representation in Los Angeles. The conversation revealed several layers of contempt for the people of Los Angeles, and a cynical, ugly desire to divide the city rather than serve it.”

In the audio, Martinez was also heard attacking progressive LA District Attorney George Gascón, saying “F**k that guy, he’s with the Blacks,” Knock LA reported. Martinez released an apology to The Los Angeles Times after her comments were exposed. “In a moment of intense frustration and anger, I let the situation get the best of me. I hold myself accountable for these comments. For that I am sorry,” she said.

“The context of this conversation was concern over the redistricting process and concern about the potential negative impact it might have on communities of color,” she added. “My work speaks for itself. I’ve worked hard to lead this city through its most difficult time.”