Two Oregon mayors resign in one week
(JULY 14, 2023) Two mayors in Oregon resigned in one week. To "resign" means to leave a job. Why? Because they shared offensive things on Facebook. Many people didn't like that.
Matt Diaz was mayor of Baker City. He used Facebook. He shared a picture of four Pride flags. A Pride flag represents the LGBTQ community. LGBTQ means lesbian, gay, bisexual, trans, and queer. The flags, however, were in the shape of a swastika. The swastika was a symbol of the Nazis in World War II. The Nazis believed in white supremacy. People in Baker City wanted Diaz to quit. He resigned July 6, 2023. He is moving out of town.
Dean Sawyer was mayor of Newport. He used Facebook. He shared posts that are hateful of women, immigrants, non-English speakers, and people who are LGBTQ. Many posts made fun of trans people. Sawyer said he was sorry. He says he knows he hurt people. He said the post didn't reflect his personal values. People in Newport wanted Sawyer to quit. He resigned July 10, 2023.
Levinson, Jonathan. “Newport Mayor Apologizes, Agrees to Step down over Hateful Facebook Posts.” Opb, 10 July 2023, www.opb.org/article/2023/07/10/newport-mayor-resign-dean-sawyer/. Accessed 13 July 2023.
Sierra, Antonio. “Baker City Mayor Resigns Weeks after Posting Anti-LGBTQ Meme.” Opb, 12 July 2023, www.opb.org/article/2023/07/12/baker-city-oregon-mayor-resigns-weeks-after-posting-anti-lgbtq-meme/. Accessed 13 July 2023.
Image: Adapted from SANtosito, CC BY-SA 4.0 <https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0>, via Wikimedia Commons