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The Kansas Governor calls for the resignation of a white county commissioner who claimed he was "an integral part of the race" when he spoke with an African-American consultant when from a public meeting last week.
Governor Jeff Colyer asks Louis Klemp, chairman of the Leavenworth County Council of Commissioners, to step down after his "inappropriate remarks" at a public meeting on November 13th.
"Racial and discriminatory language has no place in our society, especially when it is spoken by a person in a public office," Colyer said in a statement. "The inappropriate words of Leavenworth County Commissioner Louis Klemp are unacceptable and do not reflect the values of the county he represents, and as such, I ask him to resign from his position as County Commissioner."
Leavenworth County Board of County Commissioners
At a public meeting on Tuesday, Triveece Penelton, consultant for VIREO Planning Associates in Kansas City, was making a presentation to the council of commissioners on community engagement in the potential development of rural lands in Tonganoxie, Kansas.
In a video of the meeting, posted on the Leavenworth County Council of Commissioners YouTube channel, Klemp expressed his dissatisfaction with the land development project as a residential area. He said that he was in favor of an industrial development that would bring revenue back to the county.
Addressing directly to Penelton, Klemp said, "I do not want you to think I'm blaming you because we're part of the masters race.You know you have a gap in your teeth. Masters, Don never forget that. "
Klemp did not explain what he meant by the comment.
The term "master race" comes from Nazi terminology, often describing Adolf Hitler's belief in a superior Aryan race.
Klemp did not respond to requests for comments made Sunday by ABC News.
Penelton also could not be contacted for comment on Sunday.
Leavenworth County Administrator Mark Loughry issued a statement in which he defended Klemp, saying the Commissioner was referring to a gap between his teeth and noted that Penelton had a similar deficiency.
"The use of the term" Master Race ", as misguided as it is, was not a reference to the Nazis nor used racially in this case," said Loughry in a statement. "Leavenworth County has zero tolerance towards all staff members for racism or discrimination and I am deeply sorry that a comment misinterpreted by a member of our elected governing body has caused so much grief, sorrow. and hatred. "
But Robert Holland, one of Klemp's colleagues on the commission, said Klemp needed to be disciplined.
"When he said" master breed ", there is no master breed," said Holland at ABC's affiliate channel, KMBC-TV, in Leavenworth. "I mean, we are all Americans, we are all human beings, there is no master race."
Holland said it plans to withdraw Klemp's chairman of the board of directors, whose term expires Jan. 15.
At the same time, the Leavenworth Municipal Commission held a special meeting on Thursday and issued a statement condemning Klemp's remark. She asked him to apologize and withdraw.
"These comments garnered widespread negative attention and detracted from the overall perception of Leavenworth County residents, businesses, cities, organizations and agencies," the Leavenworth Municipal Commission said in its statement. "The Municipal Commission unequivocally denounces the use of" master race "or any other language with historical links to racism, division and fanaticism, in any context and at any time."
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