‘Harassment’ of Fil-Am candidate for LA City Council denounced

Ysabel Jurado is running for  a seat in the LA City Council representing the 14th District. From Ysabel Jurado’s campaign website

LOS ANGELES – Supporters of Filipino American tenant rights lawyer Ysabel Jurado have urged voters in Los Angeles’ 14th Council District to cast their ballot for Jurado, who is seeking to unseat incumbent Kevin de León.

They said Jurado can help turn a new leaf for downtown and northeast LA neighborhoods impacted by what they called “failed leadership.”

If she wins, Jurado would make history as the first Fil-Am to serve on the Los Angeles City Council.

In Boyle Heights, Women’s March Action founder and executive director Emiliana Guereca organized a gathering at the organization’s office on Thursday to remind voters what’s at stake in Tuesday’s election. Speakers denounced de León’s behavior and campaign tactics, which they described as “harassment” of Jurado and her family.

A representative for de León’s campaign did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

“It’s really clear that Ysabel is a candidate to truly represent us,” Guereca said.

She added that the community needs to move forward, needs resources and overall deserves better, citing past issues with de León.

De León has survived four recall attempts and widespread calls for his resignation — prompted by his participation in a private conversation in 2021 that was recorded and later leaked in October 2022.

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In the recording, de León, former Councilman Gil Cedillo, former Council President Nury Martinez and former Federation President Ron Herrera discussed ways to expand Latino/Hispanic influence by manipulating the redistricting process, which establishes new boundaries for council districts using Census data.

The conversation also featured disparaging and racist remarks against Black, Oaxacan, Jewish and Armenian residents.

De León has apologized for his participation in the conversation.

Zahra Hajee, a board member of California Women’s List, a political action committee that endorses and helps elect women to public office, noted women candidates face “disproportionate and unacceptable hostility.”

A recent survey of more than 100 women candidates, conducted by Hajee’s organization, found that two-thirds of them experienced harassment, about 40 percent experienced stalking and one in four women faced violence on the campaign trail.

Michelle Atwood, political director at LPAC, which supports LGBTQ+ women and nonbinary people for public office, alleged de León has intimidated Jurado by sending his supporters to stalk her. She alleged that his supporters have posted homophobic and sexist remarks on social media.

The speakers also criticized de León’s hiring of community activist Najee Ali, who they say has a history of violence against women, including multiple arrests and restraining orders. One woman spoke about her experience with Ali, which resulted in her obtaining a restraining order against him last year.

The woman contended in court papers that Ali became angry with her and began harassing her and her boyfriend after she ended an affair with the married Ali. She accused him of threatening her and sending her explicit photos of her that she was unaware existed.

“I’m the woman who got a restraining order against Najee Ali in 2023 after he choked me, harassed me, and threatened to blackmail me,” the woman said Wednesday. “Ali is not the man he pretends to be in the community. Behind closed doors, he’s a different person, a monster.”

Ali denied the accusations of his alleged violence against women. In an interview with CNS, he acknowledged the restraining order, but called it “frivolous” and without merit. Ali claimed that Wednesday’s gathering was meant as an attack on him and de León, and described it as a “smear campaign.”

“They don’t believe in funding the police, law and order, safety, and they believe that no one is allowed redemption,” Ali said.

Jurado came under fire last week for saying “F– the police” when asked at a meeting with students at Cal State Los Angeles about her feelings regarding police spending. The student who asked the question turned out to work for de León, but is also a CSULA student.

Jurado defended her comments, saying she quoted a lyric from a song that’s been “part of a larger conversation on (systemic) injustice and police accountability for decades” and that she is committed to public safety. (With CNS report)