LA’s Black-Latino tensions bared in City Council scandal

By ANITA SNOW
Associated Press

Cross-cultural coalitions have ruled Los Angeles politics for decades, helping elect both Black and Latino politicians to top leadership roles in the huge racially and ethnically diverse city. But a shocking recording of racist comments by the city’s City Council president has laid bare the tensions over political power that have been quietly simmering between the Latino and Black communities. Concerns among the African American community have been growing in recent years as the Latino share of the population has grown and as Hispanic politicians have started assuming more leadership roles. Latino leaders around the U.S. have denounced the recorded remarks and called for the resignations of those involved.