"Toward the end of Wednesday's afternoon meeting, Councilor Ryan falsely claimed he wasn't provided context for the subject of the story, or given enough time to make an informed statement, despite email exchanges (below) that show otherwise. The story concerned a series of group chats that contained racist and offensive language about progressive city councilors of color. Ryan was asked for comment on the story because Owendoff, the person who sent and received the offensive messages, appears to have sway over Ryan's policy decisions."
"With reflection, I know I wasn't my best self after a marathon Council session Wednesday, and I apologize for the unfair criticism I leveled at the Mercury and its reporter. Had I known what the text messages said, I would have been clear: The name calling by Owendoff is completely unacceptable, and my colleagues who were assailed deserve an apology."
Portland City Councilor Dan Ryan publicly criticized the Mercury after a report revealed racist and offensive group chat messages involving local real estate broker Brian Owendoff and conservative activists. Ryan claimed he lacked context and time to respond, though email exchanges showed prior contact. The revealed messages attacked progressive councilors of color. Owendoff appears to influence Ryan's policy positions, including past occasions when Ryan repeated Owendoff's messages during council debate on a rental price-fixing software ban. Ryan later issued an apology for his unfair criticism and said the name-calling by Owendoff was unacceptable.
Read at Portland Mercury
Unable to calculate read time
Collection
[
|
...
]