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Topline:
The Los Angeles City Council on Wednesday voted to ban use of the N-word and the C-word during meetings in response to a recent increase in abusive or offensive language from a handful of people who regularly address the council.
The rule: Under the ordinance, people who repeatedly use the words will be subject to removal from council chambers or committee meetings and possibly banned from future meetings.
The backstory: City Council President Marqueece Harris-Dawson, who is Black, said since the first election of President Donald Trump in 2016, public comment by a few people has devolved into “rank, cantankerous, and rude and demeaning and insulting” language. He said use of vulgar language has put a chill on civic participation because people don’t want to come to meetings.
“We believe these words add no additional value to any statement that any petitioner might make to the council and that they are always and universally designed to demean individuals,” said Harris-Dawson, who authored the proposal.
First Amendment concerns: Past efforts to curb offensive behavior have failed. The city was forced to settle a lawsuit filed by a Black man who was thrown out of a meeting for wearing a Ku Klux Klan hood and a T-shirt with the N-word on it. Harris-Dawson said he believes the new rule on speech will hold up in court because it’s limited in scope and the consequences are clearly articulated.
What’s next: One man who is a regular speaker at City Council meetings used the N-word Wednesday as he promised to file a First Amendment lawsuit against the city challenging the new rule.