What You Should Know: Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr Shouldn’t Apologize—He Needs to Resign

Last week, the hate-filled, homophobic, misogynistic Councilman Ruben Diaz Sr was quoted with yet another homophobic remark where he said that most the New York City Council is ‘controlled by the homosexual community’ and then went on to say that the council speaker Corey Johnson is a homosexual married to another man.

Now, Diaz Sr says he won’t apologize and that he’s the victim.

But why are lawmakers acting surprised that Diaz, yet again, made a homophobic remark? Why are we pretending that this is something shocking or new with the cowboy reverend?

This is the same individual that invited Senator Ted Cruz to The Bronx (which was almost immediately canceled after community and student uproar)so again, why are we also shocked?

The time for apologies have come and long gone. We are living in 2019 where we have no time or space for hate within out communities, let alone our so-called elected officials.

We already, as an LGBTQ community, have enough to deal with due to the current occupant at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue in Washington DC who’s doing his best to erode the rights of the LGBTQ community along with everyone else who isn’t a straight, heterosexual white male.

Hate crimes continue to rise against LGBTQ identifying individuals, why do we need a leader in our own borough preaching hate?

We will NOT accept this abuse in our own backyard.

Simply put, Ruben Diaz Sr needs to resign.

And while his son, Bronx Borough President Ruben Diaz Jr has called out his father’s deplorable comments, we can’t completely applaud that.

Where was Diaz Jr when his father has continuously attacked the LGBTQ community and women’s rights?

Now that Diaz Jr. will probably be running for mayor, he decided to speak up because it might hurt his campaign but we see you too, Jr. You had years to consistently denounce your father’s actions but you didn’t.

As for NYC Speaker Corey Johnson, you reap what you sow. As you may remember, Johnson (who’s demanding an apology from Diaz Sr) visited Diaz in the hospital as if they were buddies in 2016.

The visit raised plenty of eyebrows leading everyone to assume it was to discuss Corey Johnson’s eventual bid to run for Speaker and whether or not he could count on Diaz Sr.s vote and quite possibly sway the rest of The Bronx’s councilmembers to line up and vote accordingly.

Once Johnson became Speaker, he rewarded a known LGBTQ homophobic reverend and misogynist against women’s reproductive rights with his own committee to chair.

So to Speaker Corey Johnson we also say, porfa please…cry me a river.

Diaz Sr doesn’t even speak for the majority of his district as if you remember less than 50% actually voted for him with the majority voting for someone else. He just happened to get the most votes but clearly has no mandate in our district or city nor does he have a right to represent us in our beautifully diverse borough.

Our Bronx elected officials will cry foul at his remarks but many attached to the teat of the Bronx Democratic machine are responsible for his continued election into office.

You are all complicit in his behaviors because you’ll cry out in public one day but the next day you’re out campaigning alongside him.

The Bronx deserves better. Much better.