The City of San Mateo is in a bind. Newly elected City Council members Lisa Diaz Nash and Robert Newsom decided to turn the Dec. 5 City Council meeting, the first meeting after the 2022 election, into an embarrassing spectacle.
Despite campaign promises by Nash and Newsom to work for city unity, they began their activities by grotesquely blocking the councilwoman's succession Amourence Lee, who was to be the new mayor of this city following the system of rotation of mayors.
Councilwoman Lee would have been the first Asian Jewish woman to serve as mayor. In addition to representing a broad cross-section of the Asian American and Pacific Islander (AAPI) community, Lee was elected by the entire city and not just her District 2. As such, she represents a diverse and large population, particularly low-income individuals, as Lee has been a voice for affordable housing and against hate crimes.
The San Mateo City Council currently consists of Amourence Lee, Adam Loraine, Lisa Diaz Nash and Robert Newsom. The fifth seat was previously occupied by Diane Papan but is now vacant after she was elected to represent San Mateo in the California Assembly.
During the lengthy City Council meeting, Nash and Newsom said they were holding off on mayoral rotation in anticipation of a fifth council member, which is absurd given the 128-year precedent of mayoral rotation.
In politics, it is good to debate, it is very valid, and even healthy, to differ, but in this case, it is obvious that Nash and Newsom are making a mistake and are targeting Lee, which generates chaos, exclusion and community division. This could translate into ethnic clashes and even the appearance of new messages of hate in the city of San Mateo.
Nash and Newsom must reconsider, put aside their pride and correct their mistake.
Manuel Ortiz Escámez is a Mexican journalist and documentary photographer based in Redwood City. He is co-founder and director of Peninsula 360 Press. He has more than 20 years of experience documenting issues of international migration and social justice in several countries, including Mexico, the United States, Colombia, El Salvador, Bolivia, Brazil, Honduras, France, Japan and Ukraine. He holds a degree in Sociology and a master's degree in documentary film from UNAM.
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