Fresno City Council members call on Brandau to apologize for reparations comment. He doesn’t
Steve Brandau’s last meeting Thursday as a Fresno city councilman was marked by a heavy conversation on race and calls from two of his council colleagues for him to apologize for comments he made about reparations for slavery.
Residents from the black community participating in public comment at Thursday’s meeting said they experienced pain and disappointment regarding Brandau’s comments and invited him to tour southwest Fresno neighborhoods and learn about their history.
Brandau promised to take up the offer of a tour, but by the end of the meeting Thursday, there was no apology. Brandau takes his seat Tuesday on the Fresno County Board of Supervisors.
The discussion came after Brandau, in an interview with ABC30, compared south Fresno residents asking for a greater share of gas tax money with calls by some at the national level for government reparations for slavery.
During a news conference Tuesday about the gas tax money Brandau said he had used a “crappy analogy” and on Thursday from the council dais said it wasn’t his intent to offend any part of the community.
Some registered their offense during public comments.
“I’m here to say that you have shown one thing: it’s that you represent what a racist is,” said Debbie Darden, secretary of Fresno’s Black American Political Association of California and a longtime southwest Fresno advocate.
Darden said that while watching Brandau’s ABC30 interview, she asked herself: “Wow, does he really believe that the thousands and thousands of African Americans who lost their lives during slavery, the repayment would only be to add sidewalks? You call that a repayment to the African American people who died in slavery?”
Dorothy “Dottie” Smith, a lifelong Fresno resident, reminded Brandau that “words do hurt…I think comments from our leaders, people who govern our city and county, you need to understand that words have power.”
Rev. DJ Criner of Saint Rest Baptist Church said members of his congregation were hurt by the remarks. “Right now, the pain is turning into anger,” he said. “Before you open your mouth, open your eyes and ears and hear that people are hurting.”
Brandau reiterated on Thursday that he knew he chose a bad analogy. “It won’t happen again,” he said. He also committed to touring southwest Fresno with Aaron Foster, another community advocate and longtime resident.
Councilman Miguel Arias told Brandau a simple apology would go a long way, and Council President Esmeralda Soria reminded Brandau it’s not the first time he said hurtful things toward a community. Soria was referring to when Brandau called advocates “poverty pimps,” and said she continues to reject those types of comments.
Councilman Paul Caprioglio voiced support for Brandau, saying he didn’t believe there was ill intent behind his comments.
This story was originally published April 4, 2019 at 4:12 PM.