Democrat Charlotte City Councilwoman LaWana Mayfield took to Twitter on Monday to counter the criticism by the editorial board of the Charlotte Observer of her appointment to a sensitive commission.
In December 2018, Mayfield was appointed to the Human Rights Commission by Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.
The Charlotte Observer’s Editorial Board published an Op-Ed critical of the appointment due to Mayfield’s checkered and controversial statements regarding law enforcement and for promoting 9/11 conspiracy theories on her Facebook page.
“Mayfield’s appointment sends another troubling message. It normalizes the kind of inflammatory rhetoric that increasingly pollutes public discourse. It says you’re fine saying destructive things so long as you’re on our team,” the Charlotte Observer article read.
The Charlotte Observer piece ends with saying that “Cooper should give this appointment another look, instead of looking the other way.”
Mayfield’s response to the paper on Twitter arguably underscored the point of the Charlotte Observer’s Op-ed:
So interesting, I don't remember outrage regarding the Blatant Bias exhibited by Non-African Americans. Thank You for letting US know what YOU really support #CharlotteObserver #AttemptingToSilenceTheONLYVotingBlackFemale #TheyMadBecauseITalkAboutIt #WellIAmMadThatTHEYWont https://t.co/5q0jm8nQ9f
— LaWana Mayfield (@lawanamayfield) February 4, 2019
Since being elected to the Charlotte City Council, Mayfield has made numerous controversial comments.
“Being Black in America under #45 has created homegrown terrorist wearing blue uniforms,” tweeted LaWana Mayfield in late March of 2018.
That tweet drew a swift public backlash. In response to criticism, Mayfield did not apologize but went on the attack, ostensibly playing the race card and claimed her tweet was ‘freedom of speech’.
So YOU do NOT support Freedom of Speech? Or do YOU support the attacks on unarmed Black & Brown people????
— LaWana Mayfield (@lawanamayfield) May 16, 2018
At the next city council meeting, the wives of local law enforcement members spoke out during the public comments portion of the meeting. The women wore a shirt that read “My husband is not a terrorist. My husband is my hero.”
Prior to the “homegrown terrorists” tweet, Mayfield had stirred controversy with a Facebook post promoting a conspiracy theory that the 9/11 terror attack was a “controlled demolition.” A Change.org petition calling for her resignation emerged after Mayfield refused to apologize for the Facebook post.
More recently, LaWana Mayfield jumped on the bandwagon of the now-debunked attacks on the Covington Catholic school students.
Pay attention to the girl laughing https://t.co/RcJFhaXUtq
— LaWana Mayfield (@lawanamayfield) January 23, 2019
Cooper’s questionable appointment of LaWana Mayfield may bring scrutiny to his other appointments, but perhaps also to who is vetting the candidates for boards and commissions.
Kathryn Hendrickson is the daughter of Tom Hendrickson, the man behind a dark money group supporting North Carolina Democratic Governor Roy Cooper.
Kathryn Hendrickson was hired to the influential post of Deputy Director of Boards and Commissions and is responsible for the selection and vetting of possible commission or board candidates for Governor Cooper.
Prior to being hired at Boards and Commissions, Kathryn Hendrickson worked for the Governor-Elect Transition Office as a ‘transition aide’, the Hillary for America campaign, and her father’s business, Lookout Ventures, Inc.
While in her role as Deputy Director of Boards and Commissions, both of Kathryn Hendrickson’s parents have been appointed to certain boards.
Jill Hendrickson was appointed to the Tryon Place Commission on November 30, 2017.
On December 12, 2017, Governor Cooper appointed Tom Hendrickson to the Global Transpark Authority.
Tom Hendrickson would also be appointed by Cooper to the Marine Fisheries Commission on August 1, 2018.
Furthermore, Tom Hendrickson is a Cooper donor, giving Cooper’s 2016 campaign the maximum donation of $5,100. Since 2000, Tom Hendrickson has donated $15,100 to the election campaigns of Roy Cooper.
Tom Hendrickson, the main figure behind the dark money group called “Moving NC Forward,” is joined on the board by Stella Adams and Jewell Wilson. All three are high level, long-time NC Democratic Party donors. The group also has direct ties to Roy Cooper’s gubernatorial campaign.
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A.P. Dillon is the North Carolina Bureau Chief for The Tennesee Star and a reporter at Battleground State News. Follow A.P. Dillon on Twitter. Email Tips to [email protected].
Photo “NC General Assembly” by NC General Assembly and photo “LaWana Mayfield” by LaWana Mayfield.
