A North Carolina city council is condemning racist comments made by the mayor’s wife about Black residents.
In a now-deleted social media post, Yvonne Doughtie discussed what she described as problems in the city’s neighborhoods and schools, blaming some of those issues on Black residents.
“I have observed that Black Citizens have moved into the City of Roanoke Rapids and RRHS (Roanoke Rapids High School), and there has been a lot of problems with their housing area and in the schools,” she wrote, according to screenshots of her post shared by Troy Davis.
“I am not saying all Black Citizens but a lot of them just don’t take care of their houses, especially if they are renting,” she continued.
After the post drew backlash on social media, all members of the Roanoke Rapids City Council except Mayor Emery Doughtie, Doughtie’s husband, signed a statement condemning racial discrimination, according to the Roanoke Rapids Daily Herald.
“Recent comments shared on social media have caused concern and hurt within our community,” the council said. “We want to be clear that the City Council does not condone or agree with words or expressions that are racist, discriminatory, or demeaning toward any individual or group of people.”
According to RRSpin, the city said the comments appeared to come from an account belonging to the spouse of an elected official and stressed that the individual is a private citizen who does not speak for the city.
“Hate and racism do not represent the values of the Roanoke Rapids City Council,” the council said. “We stand for dignity. We stand for respect, and above all, we stand with and represent all of our people.”
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