City Councillor Throws Out N-Word During Debate

A London, Ontario city councillor made quite the stir during question period of a council meeting on Tuesday when she casually threw out the n-word in one of her responses.

Sandy White was addressing her reasons for resigning from the city’s transit commission after she quit in response to a racy Katy Perry ad that had been featured on city buses.

The ad, which showed Perry in a bra, offended White and caused her to profer her resignation.

She recounted how she had been told that kids liked the ad, and said in council:

I’m done. That’s enough. They like drugs, they like alcohol, they like a lot of things and do we put that on the side of a bus? But if I would have used words like n—–, oh, then it would have made sense.

Let me get this straight Sandy White.Whipped Cream bottles glued to bras: bad. Racist slurs in city council meetings: A-Ok.

— Ryan Forsythe (@Ryaninabox) March 6, 2013

The debate on her resignation continued for a few minutes, until another councillor brought up her use of the racial epithet.

Councillor Matt Brown admonished White for her comment, reminding her that slurs – particularly ones that make no sense – have no place in society, or city council.

White later emailed the Blackburn News to say:

I am sorry it came to this and I will choose different language in the future.

She also said she used the term on the advice of her daughter, who is black.

Ward 14 Coun. Sandy White induces the “cringe factor’ just about every time she opens her mouth during city council meetings. #ldnont

— Butch McLarty (@ButchyMcLarty) March 6, 2013

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