LULAC calls for Salinas councilman's censure after he films, makes derisive comment about farmworkers.

First came the jaw-dropping video, then came the public dragging and now comes a loud call for an official public scolding.

Salinas' District 6 Councilman Tony Villegas shot the cellphone video the evening of April 9 as he drove down John Street in South Salinas. The clip, also narrated by Villegas, shows farmworkers amassing in the parking lot of The Budget Inn Motel as they await a catering truck to deliver their evening meal. The farmworkers, H2-A visa holders, are living at the motel during the harvesting season; because they don't have a kitchen in which to prepare their own meals, the labor contractor who hired them is required to provide their food. 

There are several dozen men standing around in the parking lot and no semblance of social distancing taking place. As he drives past them, Villegas takes them to task over it, makes a turn through a gas station parking lot and drives past them again so he can film them further.

"Right over by the motel, this is nuts," Villegas says on the clip, which he posted to Facebook. "This is their social distancing. Look at all that. I guess it's taco time. Insane." 

Almost as quickly as he put the video up, he took it down—but not before widespread public outcry occurred (with some pointing out it's illegal to drive and be on a cell phone at all, much less use it to film while driving) and the clip was copied and shared with local media. Among the comments about the video received by the Weekly: "What the loving fuck is this from a councilman?" "OK, not to be THAT guy, but the 'taco time' comment sounded semi-racist and why is he breaking the law using his phone while driving and clearly being distracted." "Fuck that puto." "I ask myself on a regular basis how someone like him was able to beat Jyl Lutes." 

And, most pointedly: "The fact he doesn't know the housing situation that many farmworkers face is really unbelievable," one commenter wrote. "He is speaking of social distance like if they have another option." 

Villegas has not returned an email request for comment made on April 10, although that evening he posted the following to Facebook: "A big shoutout to the agricultural industry and its farmworkers for keeping fruits and vegetables on the shelves."

If it was meant to be an apology, it fell flat, and now the League of United Latin American Citizens, or LULAC, is calling for Villegas' fellow councilmembers to publicly censure him during the April 14 City Council meeting.

The letter, signed by Chris Barrera, president of Salinas LULAC Council #2055, calls out Villegas' "taco time" comment, describes his behavior as "abhorrent" and notes it's not the first time he's made racially offensive remarks. 

From the LULAC letter: 

"On April 10, 2020, Mr. Villegas was videotaped demeaning a group of Latino Salinas residents wherein he made racially charged remarks on Facebook Live: 'I guess it’s taco time.' Such offensive behavior will not be tolerated by our community. It should be noted that it is not an isolated incident, but further evidence of a disturbing trend for Mr. Villegas. In September 2019, Villegas posted several offensive Facebook comments against Salinas Union High School District trustee, and District 6 constituent, Anthony Rocha, referring to him as “Cockrocha” and taking it further by creating a Facebook event entitled, “Pity Party for Cockrocha!” Villegas was never made to answer for that offense; with his recent actions, it’s clear that the Salinas City Council MUST take disciplinary actions against Councilmember Villegas. This type of behavior from our elected official is an outrageous example of bad leadership! A true leader would have pulled over and tried to educate these members of the public instead of making a mockery of them on a social media live feed with racist comments. Our farmworkers are deemed essential and should be well respected as they are feeding you and your families. You must be a solution and not add to the already strained relationship of the City Council and the community!

The letter continues: "During this Coronavirus pandemic it is a time for our community, and its leaders, to come together and help those in need. To be clear, Villegas’s behavior is inappropriate, notwithstanding the health crisis we face. However, during this time, it is elevated as Villegas is part of a city council in which the majority of its population is Latino and in crisis. It has been noted that we are the 'Salad Bowl of the World' wherein our majority Latino farmworkers are deemed 'essential' during the Coronavirus pandemic. Consequently, the residents of this community must be treated with respect, especially by our city leaders. During this crisis, our residents face many challenges and need more assistance than usual from their public servants. If they are made to feel fear, or mistrust, from their city council, how are they to get the help they need during these trying times? Such action endangers the entire population: If our community does not feel safe to reach out to our city leaders, it will lead to further trouble in an already chaotic time. We demand that Councilmember Villegas be formally disciplined including, but not limited to, a public censure for his racist actions!" 

Barrera tells the Weekly that LULAC members will be out at The Budget Inn at 6pm tonight, April 13, to show support for the farmworkers and to hand out flyers with information on how they can maintain social distancing and stay healthy during the pandemic. He says that Villegas dodged his phone calls over the weekend, but they finally spoke this morning.

"At end of day, they're our elected officials and they have to be held accountable, especially when they do something boneheaded like this," Barrera says. Barrera adds they spoke this morning, and that he told Villegas he should show up to The Budget Inn at 6pm. 

"He agreed he would be there," Barrera says.

The City Council meeting will be held via teleconference and livestreamed starting at 4pm April 14. As of April 13, it was unclear if the city would act on LULAC's request, but some of Villegas' fellow councilmembers have already expressed shock over the video clip.

"Surprised. I'll leave it at that for now. I was really surprised," says Salinas Mayor Joe Gunter. He adds that he reached out to the motel manager and asked him to remind the farmworkers staying there about the need for social distancing.

Scott Davis, the city's District 1 councilmember, says of the video: "This isn't how Salinas and our community needs to be treating people.

"I was shocked and I'm totally disappointed in the callousness and the lack of forethought that Councilmember Villegas showed in his recent video on Facebook. This community is largely Latino and we rely on the people who work in the fields."

On Monday morning, Anthony Rocha, the subject of Villegas previous social media gaffes in which Villegas referred to him as "cockarocha" announced he would run for the District 6 council seat in the November election. Several months ago, Villegas told multiple people he was not planning on running for re-election; it was unclear if he has since changed his mind.