Huntington Beach City Council to consider items denouncing hate crimes and white supremacy

In response to recent news of racially-motivated activities the Huntington Beach City Council on Monday night will tend to an agenda aimed at denouncing hate crimes and white supremacy.

One agenda item, introduced by Councilwoman Natalie Moser, would have the city co-sponsoring a virtual event on April 11 with Orange County Human Relations, and coordinating a diversity, equity and inclusion event on April 18 at Central Park.

The item that calls for the council to denounce white supremacy was introduced by Councilman Dan Kalmick, after news earlier this week that a “White Lives Matter” rally was possibly being planned for the Huntington Beach Pier on April 11.

Kalmick said the first step of dealing with systemic racism is calling it out and saying, “We don’t want it here.”

“We don’t want to be known for white supremacy, and we don’t support white supremacy,” he said. “We respect the First Amendment of the Constitution, which allows folks to assemble peacefully ... But I want our City Council to stand firm and say, ‘We don’t want you here.’”

Mayor Kim Carr and Kalmick co-introduced an agenda item that aims to denounce hate crimes and reaffirm the city’s commitment to safety and inclusivity. Kalmick said it came in aftermath of a recent rise of anti-Asian American racism; an estimated one in eight Huntington Beach residents is of Asian and Pacific Islander descent.

Orange County communities with larger Asian American populations, such as Cypress and Westminster, have passed similar resolutions in recent weeks. A rally in support of the Asian American community was held at Leisure World in Seal Beach on Monday.

“The momentum on that issue has really started to move, so we wanted to make sure that Huntington Beach was also included,” Kalmick said.

In related news, a flier circulating on social media Thursday advertised a counter-protest against racial injustice and police brutality, tentatively scheduled for 11 a.m. on April 11. Tory Johnson, a Huntington Beach resident who is Black and started a grassroots Black Lives Matter Huntington Beach group, said he’s one of the organizers.

“We’re going to have a party out there, and we’ll be there all day if we have to,” Johnson said. “Under no circumstance do we want to continue the reflection of our city being a racist hub, a hub of white supremacists. We have a dangerous history of being disgustingly racist, you know? We want to go out there and make a stand and let the people know, ‘Hey, this isn’t going on anymore’ ... We do not want our city to be a reflecton of hate on a national scale.”

Monday’s City Council meeting starts at 6 p.m. and will remain virtual. It can be watched
on channel HBTV-3 or online at huntingtonbeach.legistar.com.

Residents may send comments on agenda items to supplementalcomm@surfcity-hb.org. Communications received by 2 p.m. Monday will be distributed to the council prior to consideration of agenda-related items.

Residents are encouraged to submit comments during the meeting via Zoom. The Webinar ID is 971 5413 0528 and can be reached via the Zoom app or by calling (669) 900-6833 and entering the ID. Individuals will be placed in a holding queue and prompted to speak when the city clerk announces their name or the last three digits of their phone number.

Time for remarks is limited to three minutes.

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