‘Racist’ comments prompts call for better protection
A councillor has called Inner West Council meetings ‘appalling’ after policy talks turned into what he claims were racist comments. He has now called for changes.
Inner West
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A councillor has called for more to be done about discrimination following what he describes as “racist comments” directed towards him by a fellow councillor.
Greens councillor Louise Steer formally apologised for her “insensitive” comments at the October 8 meeting and a “discrimination motion” was passed unanimously.
The motion tabled by Cr Macri asked that council to “strengthen protection for victims of discrimination by removing the offender from the council activity or function”.
Cr Victor Macri also produced his birth certificate at last night’s Inner West Council meeting after being asked to provide it by Cr Steer.
The discrimination motion has its origins in the volatile September 24 council meeting during which there was a heated debate regarding a proposed tree policy.
Cr Macri described the meeting, and others before it, as “appalling” adding: “Anyone who is watching (the council meetings) will lose complete confidence in this local government.”
At the meeting on September 24, Cr Steer waved 2457 signatures “from citizens of the inner west” who objected to the contentious tree policy.
But Cr Macri stated many of the signatures were not from the inner west.
To which Cr Steer replied “neither are you”.
At that point, Mayor Darcy Byrne called an adjournment. Yet the insults continued to fly.
“I was born in Camperdown, you can’t say that,” Cr Steer told Cr Macri.
She added: “You said you couldn’t speak English (when you were a child).”
Cr Macri asked “Do you want to see my birth certificate?” to which Cr Steer replied “Yes, I do.”
As a result, Cr Macri tabled his birth certificate at council.
“I had to go into the city to get it. I never thought I’d need it,” Cr Macri said.
“It really gets offensive when you need to justify why you’re here.”
Cr Steer apologised at the council meeting yesterday, stating her Portuguese heritage “of which I am proud”.
“My comments on the 24 September meeting were unacceptable. I apologise unreservedly to councillor Macri for the hurt he has experienced from these comments and I apologise unreservedly … to our community and to our council,” she said.
“I disparaged the heritage of councillor Macri, which was wrong and insensitive of me.”
“Our wonderful community is so enriched by the diversity of the community members we are privileged to represent.”
Although Cr Macri lives in Belmore, his family has owned a barbershop on Marrickville Rd since 1960 and he is a local ratepayer.
The motion, to be voted on at Tuesday’s meeting, asks to “Encourage the chair of the committee to use the code of meeting practice to eject members of the gallery or of the council that transgress the code of meeting practice.”
“The Mayor has done nothing. The Mayor has to do something,” Cr Macri said about removing councillors from meetings following discriminatory comments.
“Enough is enough, when people are devoid of facts why do they attack people personally?”
The motion also asks for more than “a simple apology” from councillors for “damaging” behaviour.
“(Council) does not accept that elected officials who regularly bring Council into disrepute believe a simple apology atones for the reputational damage they inflict to Council and their victims”, the motion continues.
“A line in the ground has well and truly been drawn in the behaviour of councillors and I for one will not tolerate any departures,” Cr Macri said at the October 8 meeting.
Greens MP David Shoebridge said: “Those comments were unacceptable and I am glad to see an apology has been issued. It was needed.”
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