A Latin councilor’s discussion at Zoom on racial disparities was interrupted by people laughing at his accent

A Latin councilor’s discussion at Zoom on racial disparities was interrupted by people laughing at his accent

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Nancy Navarro, a member of the Montgomery County Council in Maryland, was speaking during a virtual meeting on Tuesday about how the launch of the county coronavirus vaccine failed people of color and the burden she felt as a Latino in the local leadership.

In the background, there was the faint sound of conversations and laughter from two people who apparently did not realize they were not in mute mode.

“I love how her accent comes out … and pronounce words that she thinks are pronounced,” said one woman, commenting on how Navarro had uttered the words “represent” and “hologram”.

A man replied with a laugh: “I heard ‘hologram’ and thought, ‘This is very interesting.'”

“So cute,” replied the woman, with another laugh.

After the meeting, Navarro’s team told her what had happened. It took her a few minutes to process everything. Then, she felt exhausted and angry.

“That kind of comment is completely inappropriate and unnecessary,” Navarro wrote in a memo to his fellow board members after the incident. “It is a loud commentary on the toxicity and culture of disrespect addressed to leaders and members of the colored community.”

Employers of individuals condemned their behavior

The woman who was speaking was an employee of the Montgomery County Council, according to council spokeswoman Sonya Healy. The man was an intern at Montgomery Community Media, an organization that has a contract with the council to help manage its virtual meetings.

Neither was identified by the authorities.

Healy said the matter was turned over to the county’s human resources office for investigation.

The board said in a statement that it would “commit again to educating our workforce and promoting a culture that is absolutely respectful, free from intolerance and that reflects the values ​​of Montgomery County”.

“The Montgomery County Council sympathizes with Councilwoman Nancy Navarro after a worrying and unacceptable incident occurred during the televised Council session on Tuesday, in which background audio was heard on the broadcast,” the statement said. “The entire Board is committed to racial equality and safe workplaces. In addition, our community expects our Board and its employees and contractors to be maintained to the highest standards.”

Montgomery Community Media also condemned the comments, calling the exchange a form of micro-aggression.

“The behavior of the MCM intern involved is completely unacceptable and does not reflect our culture,” the organization said in a statement. “We are appropriately disgusted and disappointed.”
Montgomery County is the most populous in Maryland, with more than 1 million inhabitants. About 40% of residents speak a language other than English at home, and more than 30% – including Navarro – were born outside the United States, according to Census data.

Navarro is a Venezuelan immigrant

Navarro was born in Venezuela and came to the United States when she was 10 years old. Although his family moved back, Navarro returned to the United States for college at the age of 17. She and her husband moved to Montgomery County in the early 1990s, and they’ve been living there ever since.

After serving several years on the county board of education, Navarro was elected to the county council in 2009 as its first Latin member. She was re-elected in 2010 and 2014, and prioritized the causes of racial equity and social justice during her tenure on the board.

For Navarro, the context in which comments about his accent were made was shocking.

“The juxtaposition of the fact that, here we were, going through a very important moment, discussing something so critical for this municipality,” she told CNN. “… It was very interesting how it was superimposed on that particular moment.”

What happened during this week’s meeting made her even more concerned about how the local government was serving its non-white constituents.

“If that’s how they are talking about this elected official, what does that mean in terms of how it affects government service delivery to a community like this?” she added.

Navarro hopes that this incident will prompt people to consider the impact of his words and actions. Ultimately, she hopes the board will strengthen its efforts to hire a team that reflects diversity in its community.

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