LA City Council puts symbolic ban on racial slur
What started as a feel-good discussion on ways to reduce racial bias quickly turned into a freewheeling debate Friday as the Los Angeles City Council voted to declare a "symbolic moratorium" on the use of a common slur against African Americans "in the context of threats and violence."
Voting 11 to 0 on a resolution by Councilman Bernard C. Parks, the council ceremoniously banned the use of the word "nigger" after hearing testimony from lawyer Gloria Allred, a group of civil rights leaders and the owner of the nightclub where "Seinfeld" star Michael Richards used the word repeatedly during a stand-up routine last year. DAVID ZAHNISER and STEVE HYMON in the Los Angeles Times.
Voting 11 to 0 on a resolution by Councilman Bernard C. Parks, the council ceremoniously banned the use of the word "nigger" after hearing testimony from lawyer Gloria Allred, a group of civil rights leaders and the owner of the nightclub where "Seinfeld" star Michael Richards used the word repeatedly during a stand-up routine last year. DAVID ZAHNISER and STEVE HYMON in the Los Angeles Times.