Our rally:Santa Clarita councilman calls himself 'proud racist'

[Ole Glory]

By Jonathan Randles and Brandon Lowrey
Signal Staff Writers
jrandles@the-signal.com
661-259-1234 x519
Posted: Jan. 23, 2010 8:16 p.m.
POSTED Jan. 24, 2010 4:55 a.m.

Kellar’s war with words
City councilman draws support, fire over comments during rally against illegal immigration

A Santa Clarita city councilman's fiery speech at a rally against illegal immigration has drawn praise and criticism from those on either side of one of the most divisive issues in national politics.

Councilman Bob Kellar and his supporters said his words reflected his passion for the rule of law.

Others called his words overblown rhetoric and an embarassment to the city.

At the rally last weekend, Kellar gripped a microphone and told a crowd he agreed with former President Theodore Roosevelt's philosophy: This nation has room for only one flag - the American one - and one language - English. He said he once voiced that opinion at a City Council meeting and people told him he sounded like a racist.

"I said, ‘That's good. If that's what you think I am because I happen to believe in America, (then) I'm a proud racist. You're darn right, I am,'" Kellar said.

Those at the rally against illegal immigration cheered the words of the councilman and retired Los Angeles police officer.

But his words, captured on video and posted on YouTube, shocked some residents and made his fellow City Council members uneasy.

The speech also appeared to put him at odds with a section of the code of ethics for city employees, which requires officials to state explicitly they are not representing the city when advocating a personal opinion. But city officials said any ethics code violation was doubtful.

In interviews last week, Kellar said he stands by his words but hopes others don't take them out of context.

He said he is not a racist and never meant to say he was - rather, he used a rhetorical device to say opponents' name-calling wouldn't change his views.

Kellar said he does not believe expressing his personal views violates the code of ethics he and other council members approved in 2008.

He said he personally feels illegal immigration is ruining the nation economically and culturally.

"Sure, it sounds radical to many folks that don't believe like I do," Kellar said. "I was raised by my family and taught that this is America.
America has one language and one flag."

Reaction

Kellar's words echoed far beyond their intended audience at the impassioned Valencia rally organized by local Minutemen and conservative "tea party" groups.

Some found Kellar's statements at the rally disturbing, regardless of what he meant.

"I was shocked. I couldn't believe it," said Bruce McFarland, a local Democratic activist, who added Kellar's latest YouTube appearance has been a hot topic in e-mail discussions.

"Here's a guy who is supposed to be representing the city of Santa Clarita, and does represent the city of Santa Clarita - whether or not he says he's expressing our opinion," McFarland said.

"He doesn't represent us well talking that way, and I don't think he should continue to hold office. He's an embarassment to the city."

Roger Gitlin, leader of the Santa Clarita Valley Minutemen and rally organizer, said he was proud of Kellar for stepping up and speaking.

"Bob Kellar is not a racist," he said. "Bob Kellar is an American who abides by the rule of law and asks our government to do the same."

However, Gitlin said it seemed Kellar might have been "over-rhetorical."

"I think Bob probably got a little ahead of himself with his words," he said. "He is not a racist. He judges people by their deeds, not by the color of their skin or by their ethnicity."

Others who disagreed with Kellar acknowledged the councilman's opinion about illegal immigration alone doesn't make him racist.

A spokesman for the Coalition for Humane Immigrant Rights of Los Angeles, which helped suspects arrested during a local immigration raid last year, said Kellar's views, however, may be outdated.

"I don't believe that establishing ‘one flag, one language' is necessarily racist," said coalition spokesman Jorge Mario Cabrera. "I do believe that it doesn't correspond with the reality of the America we live in now."

Jorge Garcia, a Chicano studies professor at California State University, Northridge, said most immigrants, regardless of where they come from or what language they speak, try to learn English.

He scoffed at Kellar's attempt to portray his own views as radical.

"He's not a radical - he's a reactionary," Garcia said. "A reactionary wants to go back to some mythical time where everybody speaks English. It's never been that way."


City officials react
City Councilwoman Laurie Ender said she does not share Kellar's opinions.

"I thought what he said was shocking and I hope he is able to clarify his comments," she said.

Councilman Frank Ferry, a former U.S. history teacher, said during times of economic turmoil people often attack poor and disenfranchised groups.

"In my eyes, Bob Kellar and others at the rally are attacking the undocumented worker," Ferry said. "(Kellar's) rhetoric is very loud and strong, and it will definitely offend a group of people. ... But Bob doesn't care. He's not going to change his position."

Councilwoman Marsha McLean said illegal immigration is a polarizing issue that elicits strong rhetoric from both sides.

"I believe that each of us individually are responsible for the way we conduct ourselves in office," McLean said.

"The public will ultimately decide if our actions or words are appropriate or not."

Mayor Laurene Weste declined to comment.

Ethics
The city's code of ethics states, in regard to advocacy, that "when presenting their individual opinions and positions, (City Council members and other city officials) shall explicitly state they do not represent their body or the city of Santa Clarita, nor will they allow the inference that they do."

Kellar, who was mayor when the City Council approved and enacted the code in May 2008, was introduced at the rally as a city councilman and referenced what he had said about one flag, one language at a City Council meeting. On the YouTube video, he did not explicitly say he was not representing the city.

City Attorney Carl Newton, who would investigate any breach of the city's code of ethics, said Thursday he thought it was clear Kellar was giving his own passionate opinion and did not violate the code, citing the First Amendment.

"He did not say he was speaking on behalf of the council or speaking in an official capacity, so I don't think he has violated any policy," Newton said.

Ferry agreed, and other council members declined to comment about the matter.

"We have five different opinions," Ferry said. "He didn't do anything on behalf of the council."

Newton said his office has never been called to investigate an alleged breach of the code, and the consequences of a violation are unclear.

Kellar's views
Kellar said he supports immigrants who are learning English, but he is disturbed by immigrants who do not choose to learn English and assimilate.

"At the Rose Parade a few years back, I saw more Mexican flags being waved around the crowd than American flags," Kellar said. "What is that? That is disturbing to me. This is America; this is not Mexico."

"If they want to be a proud American, they should learn the English language like our forefathers did."

"I care about America," Kellar said. "I recognize we are a melting pot. We all are, including me. But we are now Americans.

"We have one flag; we have one language. That is a piece of the big puzzle that makes this nation great."

Kellar said it is the responsibility of every elected official to speak out about the issue of illegal immigration.

"Shame on elected representatives who don't have the intestinal fortitude to address the issue," Kellar said.

"I will not deviate that illegal immigration is wrong."

He added: "If there are people out there who differ with me, then so be it, because we are Americans."

Signal staff writer Tammy Marashlian contributed to this report.

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Brian:
January 24, 2010 - 11:27 AM
"Sure, it sounds radical to many folks that don't believe like I do," Kellar said. "I was raised by my family and taught that this is America.
America has one language and one flag."

Such a small minded little man. Yeah Bob, we ALL grew up just like you!

To quote one of the teabag protesters, MORAN!

truthseeker:
January 24, 2010 - 11:48 AM
Standing against ILLEGAL IMMIGRATION is now racist? Are you people mad? Bob Kellar expresses what so many of us LEGAL residents of this country (many of us from other parts of the world) think. Witness the illegal immigrant gang-bangers MURDERS and CRIME! Have a look at the ILLEGALS gathered outside the social services offices! See the Section 8 housing for the poor and the elderly in need being used up by multiple families here ILLEGALLY! Have a look at some of the schools and see the 80% children of ILLEGALS and watch the teaching standards go down!

That is NOT America! That is NOT the law and order tradition of America! That is NOT respect for all! That is an INSULT to the millions of other LEGAL immigrants who came here and RESPECTED this country, her laws, her language, and her institutions.

I've HAD IT with the PC crowd apologists who helped contribute to the destruction of my city and these attack dogs that trash the messenger but are nowhere to be found when ILLEGAL IMMIGRANT CRIMINALS create destruction and chaos in Santa Clarita.

neutronflux:
January 24, 2010 - 01:05 PM
When it comes down to it he called himself a "racist." As a resident for 27 years, that is not okay.

Lastly, the destruction of our city was done by our city council. They have approved hundreds of housing developments. Yet, they don't look at the fact that our infrastructure cannot support it.

Joe91355:
January 24, 2010 - 01:14 PM
I support Mr. Kellar and understand his frustration. I am proud to live in a city where one of our politicians has the backbone to be honest and stand up for what he believes. Mr. Kellar provided a clear explanation for the words that he used and I am content with that explanation. City Attorney Carl Newton made the correct desion not to investigate any city code violation.

SCVBILL:
January 24, 2010 - 01:29 PM
I enthusiastically support Kellar and his statement.

[Eagle1]

scvtalk.com has the following article regarding Kellar.
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1-24-2010 1PM
The Signal has a sweeping, 1300+ word piece on Racistgate in which they talk to everyone from Bob Kellar to Frank Ferry to local liberals to a CSUN professor. Amazingly, Roger Gitlin, the guy who helped organize the rally at which Kellar uttered the “I”m a proud racist” phrase, appeared as a moderate in the article and said Kellar “got a little ahead of himself with his words.”

Kellar again refuses to back off his words or apologize. Indeed, he said elected officials who don’t talk about illegal immigration ought to be ashamed of themselves.

Interestingly, the Signal reports that Kellar may have violated the City’s Code of Ethics by not explicitly stating that his views on immigration were his own and not those of the City. The relevant code says, “”when presenting their individual opinions and positions, (City Council members and other city officials) shall explicitly state they do not represent their body or the city of Santa Clarita, nor will they allow the inference that they do.”

But City Attorney Carl Newton, Frank Ferry and other unidentified members of the Council say they don’t think Kellar violated the Code of Ethics. “He did not say he was speaking on behalf of the council or speaking in an official capacity, so I don’t think he has violated any policy,” Newton told The Signal. Ha! Newton must think we are stupid, the code requires that officials affirmatively state that they are not speaking on behalf of the Council, the inverse is simply not enough; that’s obvious even from a lay reading of the code.

All these new articles (especially the KHTS one) and many of the commenters are emphasizing how important the context of Kellar’s quote was. I agree. Context is king. That’s why before you make your judgment, you ought to (in addition to reading all of his speech) consider that Kellar, our City Councliman, was at an event where a pastor gave a stirring, nativist invocation in which he said that that the US was being overrun by “those who are evil,” and that the “thing going on in our nation today” (presumably Democrats and/or illegals) were “sent straight from hell.” That was the true context for the whole rally, that was the tone right off the bat: religiously-inspired illegal immigrant bashing.

Any normal elected person -cognizant that he represented a diverse Southern California community in 2010- would have left at that point, but not Kellar. All indications are that he worked himself into a frenzy, staying for several speeches before hissing that he was a proud racist. He topped even the pastor with his rhetoric and the crowd ate it up.

I’ll say this for Kellar. Whether he is protesting against marriage equality for gays or besting even the most reactionary rhetoric at a nativist gathering, he’s clear and consistent. He had me fooled for a long time, so if anything good can be said to come from last week’s rally, it’s that I and the rest of the SCV now know the true Bob Kellar. And he’s proud of it, he stands by everything he said. And I’ll be happy to see him leave the Council in 2012, despite whatever good service he’s given to our community.


Posted in Opinion | 1 Response »
Kellar Doubles Down on “Proud Racist” Comment
Written by Jeff on January 23rd, 2010

Bob Kellar tells the Daily News in a Saturday story that he stands by his “I’m a proud racist” comment and he doesn’t really understand what all the fuss is about. Afterall, his “Proud Racist” comment “doesn’t mean I’m going to saddle up the horses at midnight,” he told the paper.

Susan Abram of the Daily News spoke to several people about Kellar’s comments, including Carole Lutness, a local activist and former Signal columnist, who told Abram that Kellar “has done some good stuff in this Valley, but his attitude is whites-only and the rest need not apply.”

Abram then spoke with people about the immigration issue and ended the article speaking to an uncomfortable Marsha McLean, who said this whole unpleasantness was a “very difficult situation” and said that Kellar doesn’t speak for the Council.

When people started emailing me about this Kellar story this morning, I thought for sure he’d take the opportunity to back away from his comments, to smooth things over, to make himself appear more reasonable and level-headed like an elected official should. I didn’t expect an apology, but maybe a “I regret the poor choice of words,” or an “I regret that I put it that way, what I meant to say was….”

Instead he doubled down on his own phrase, invoked Ku Klux Klan imagery (hey, at least our Councilman isn’t as bad as those guys, right?), and flipped the bird to those of us who are compassionate about immigration issues. He repeated what he said last Saturday to a wider audience. And the commenters on the YouTube video and the Daily News site are eating it up, feeling smug and proud that a local elected person is justifying their xenophobia.

Since he didn’t back off his incendiary comments, neither will I. Kellar has cracked his nut. He’s no longer suitable to serve as a City Councilman in Santa Clarita. He is an embarassment to our community and he ought to resign immediately.

Note: The Daily News story isn’t online right now.


Posted in Opinion | 57 Responses »
Signal to cover Kellar remarks at anti immigrant rally again
Written by Jeff on January 22nd, 2010

They just teased it in their new Qwik-E email blast for Sunday publication:

Kellar’s anti-illegal immigration remarks stir controversy
Santa Clarita City Councilman Bob Kellar’s comments last week at an anti-illegal immigration and anti-amnesty rally in front of the Santa Clarita Civic Center have drawn praise from some, while other local residents have called the elected official an embarrassment to the city.

Good on The Signal for holding our elected officials accountable for what they say. I look forward to a solid, fair, and mature report. I also regret digging at The Signal for failing to report the remarks before. Better a solid, well-written report than a hasty one. My bad.


Posted in Opinion, Politics | 11 Responses »

[Eagle1]

Councilman Bob Kellar needs support at this forthcoming Santa Clarita Valley City Council meeting.
We expect opposition to show up and speak against him. We would like everyone that can make it to the meeting to show up in support of Kellar.

Asd you know you cannot bring signs into the meeting but prior to the meeting you can be outside with your "Kellar is a Hero" signs or whatever you want.

Below is the meeting schedule with time and place from the SCV website:
Please put this out to your friends and attend if you can.

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CITY OF SANTA CLARITA

CITY COUNCIL REGULAR MEETING

Tuesday, January 26, 2010

6:00 PM

City Council Chambers

23920 Valencia Blvd. 1 st Floor

Santa Clarita, CA 91355

AGENDA
__________________________________________________ _______________________

PUBLIC FINANCING AUTHORITY - No New Business
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Public Participation Process

During the Public Participation portion of the meeting, each person wishing to speak should prepare a presentation of not more than three (3) minutes. Public Participation speaker's slips must be submitted to the City Clerk BEFORE this portion of the meeting begins. Anyone wishing to address an item on the agenda should fill out a speaker's slip and submit it to the City Clerk BEFORE the Mayor announces the item. Each person addressing the Council is given three (3) minutes to speak indicated by a colored light system on the Council dais; a green light appears when the speaker begins; a yellow light appears when 30 seconds remain and a red light appears when time has expired. Comments should be complete at this time.
__________________________________________________ _______________________

In compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, if you need special assistance to participate in this meeting, please contact the City Clerk's Office, (661) 255-4391. Notification 48 hours prior to the meeting will enable the City to make reasonable arrangements to ensure accessibility to this meeting. (28CFR 35.102-35.104 ADA Title II)
__________________________________________________ _______________________

INVOCATION - Ender

CALL TO ORDER

ROLL CALL

FLAG SALUTE

__________________________________________________ _______________________

AWARDS/RECOGNITION TO MEMBERS OF THE COMMUNITY

Saugus Girls' JV, Canyon Boys' JV and Golden Valley High Schools' Boys JV Cross Country teams for their outstanding performance at the Mt. Sac Cross Country Invitational

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PRESENTATIONS TO THE CITY

None

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COMMITTEE REPORTS/COUNCILMEMBER COMMENTS
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