Make California Post a Preferred Source Pressure is mounting on Anaheim Mayor Ashleigh Aitken as more City Council members speak out over allegations that she used racial slurs against her chief of staff.
Three council members are now pushing for the city to move quickly on an investigation into the accusations, while calls are also growing for officials to make public the documents outlining the claims.
The controversy surfaced after Aitken’s chief of staff, Berenice Ballinas, accused the mayor of making racist and homophobic remarks directed at her, the LA Times’ Daily Pilot.
The remarks include calling Ballinas a “dirty Mexican” and questioning her sexuality during a lunch at Disneyland.
“On various occasions when Ms. Ballinas was forced to drive Mayor Aitkin home, Mayor Aitkin [sic] exclaimed that she did ‘not want her car driven by a dirty Mexican,’” employment attorney Lawrence Lennemann wrote in his mediation request to Anaheim City Attorney Robert Fabela.
It also details a June lunch at Disneyland’s hyper-exclusive Club 33 and California Adventure’s 1901 Lounge.
Club 33 is renowned by Disney fans for costing tens of thousands of dollars to obtain a membership. The 1901 lounge is also exclusive to Club 33 members.
At the destinations, Aitken questioned Ballinas’ sexuality in front of other people, reports said. The mayor also allegedly gossiped about a Disney worker’s sexual orientation and ethnicity.
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Several Disney employees complained about Aitken’s conduct and a third party’s Club 33 membership was suspended, the letter said.
Aitken, who’s running for reelection, has denied the allegations.
Councilwoman Natalie Meeks had previously been the only member of the council to publicly address the accusations, calling for an investigation last week.
That changed during Tuesday night’s City Council meeting.
“I stand with Councilmember Meeks in demanding an expedited investigation. If the allegations are shown to be correct, I will also ask for the Mayor’s resignation,” Councilwoman Norma Campos Kurtz said, according to the Voice of OC.
Kurtz also called for the council to hold a special closed-door meeting to discuss the allegations, the Voice of OC reported.
“Mr. City Attorney, I would like to request that a special meeting of the city council be scheduled prior to our next regular meeting of October 13th so the council may meet in closed session with the city attorney’s office regarding the threat of litigation stemming from the alleged conduct of the mayor,” Kurtz said.
Kurtz wants documents about Ballinas’s allegation to be made public.
“I want to commend Councilmember Kurtz on her bravery for coming out and joining this and kicking me while I’m down, two weeks after this has happened. I have called for an independent investigation,” Aitken said. “This process is going to play out.”
Aitken added that she welcomes the investigation because she wants to clear her name and “is all about” democracy.
Other council members like Kristen Maahs and Ryan Balius also spoke out.
“There is no room for racism in our city period,” said Councilwoman Kristen Maahs. “I’m not only concerned about how our residents feel, but how our city staff feels.”
“I’m Mexican myself, I don’t look it and I haven’t been included in some of the comments tonight but I’m half Mexican,” Maahs added.
Councilman Ryan Balius said he believes in due process and the matter being investigated, suggesting that Aitken may want to take time off while that happens.
“I believe strongly in innocent until proven guilty,” Balius said. “I know when we have investigations in the city and what not, we oftentimes will put staff on investigatory leave. And I don’t know how to do that on city council, but I would ask the mayor – I mean we obviously got some pain in the community – maybe it is a good idea to suspend the public calendar until the investigation is over.”
