The Huntington Beach City Council on Tuesday night censured Councilmember Natalie Moser for what the council majority called “inappropriate” statements made in an argument at a previous meeting during discussions about the city’s human dignity statement.
Three of the councilmembers, including Moser, walked out of the room during the item’s discussion, leaving the four-member majority to pass the censure 4-0-3. The censure has no punishment attached.
Moser, who typically votes in lockstep with the other two councilmembers, called the censure the “weaponization of council procedures for political gain.”
At the end of the council’s Aug. 1 meeting, Councilmembers Moser and Gracey Van Der Mark got into an argument when Moser questioned if Van Der Mark had denied the Holocaust had occurred and had associations with the Proud Boys. Van Der Mark responded immediately it was a lie and the meeting quickly ended.
Moser’s questions came when the council was voting to create an ad hoc committee to update the city’s policy on human dignity. That policy, which was updated on Tuesday night, is substantially shorter and removes previous references to eliminating hate crimes.
During Tuesday’s meeting, a video was played of Van Der Mark speaking on May 7, 2018, at the City Council, before she was a councilmember, where she repudiated the accusations she denied the Holocaust.
She said others had “irresponsibly labeled me a bigoted due to videos stored on my YouTube account for research purposes only,” Van Der Mark said in 2018. “I was questioning the content, not supporting it. I do not, nor have I ever, denied the Holocaust.”
Councilmember Pat Burns called Moser’s Aug. 1 comments inappropriate and out of line. “There was no place for it the other night,” he said.
“(Van Der Mark) was accused of it back then, she defended it, she’s done it since then, but yet it’s ignored by people who want to weaponize a lie,” Burns said.
In a joint statement released Wednesday morning meeting, councilmembers Moser, Rhonda Bolton and Dan Kalmick, who had walked out during the discussion, defended Moser.
“It is paramount to understand that last night’s censure of Councilwoman Moser was not about upholding decorum, but rather an effort to suppress necessary questions about qualifications and potential biases of those appointed to committees of great importance,” the statement said. “This is especially true when it involves crafting a declaration that is meant to uphold the dignity and safety of every member of our community.”
The council majority approved on Tuesday an updated city policy on human dignity, which came from the ad hoc committee comprised of councilmembers Van Der Mark, Burns and Casey McKeon.
The new policy begins by stating that “everyone should be treated with courtesy and respect” and the community has a responsibility to “protect children from abuse of any kind, including physical abuse, emotional abuse, exploitation, and sexual grooming.”
It then moves to weigh in on gender and sports, stating: “Each sex carries advantages and disadvantages that warrant separation during certain activities (ie. sports)” and explains that it’s the city’s policy to “aggressively pursue” criminal investigations and prosecutions.
The new declaration is far shorter than previous versions. Peter Levi, a regional director for the Anti-Defamation League, said in an address to the council that the group is “deeply alarmed” by the new policy.
“The new policy is harmful and discriminatory, and it echoes false and malicious language that is increasingly weaponized against the lesbian, gay, bi, trans and queer-plus community,” Levi said.
Many speakers throughout public comment came to Moser’s defense, saying she had the right to ask those questions.
Former Huntington Beach Mayor Kim Carr said the theme of Tuesday’s agenda was the removal of debate and being canceled for speaking out.
“Having that thoughtful deliberation, having those questions being asked of each other, that’s where real policy comes forward,” Carr said.
Mayor Tony Strickland said the council’s decorum, which has been testy throughout this year, has to improve.
Source: Orange County Register
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