Politics & Government

Cops as ‘homegrown terrorists’ tweet fuels GOP Senate anger at Charlotte councilwoman

By Jim Morrill

February 05, 2019 01:59 PM

LaWana Mayfield: My driving force is that we stay a welcoming community

Charlotte City Council District 3 representative LaWana Mayfield says her driving force is that Charlotte stays a welcoming community. She says that her district is majority minority and that she has to represent the entire community when she votes.
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Charlotte City Council District 3 representative LaWana Mayfield says her driving force is that Charlotte stays a welcoming community. She says that her district is majority minority and that she has to represent the entire community when she votes.
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North Carolina Senate Republicans Tuesday asked Democratic Gov. Roy Cooper to withdraw the appointment of a Charlotte City Council member who once compared police to “homegrown terrorists.”

The 29 GOP senators urged Cooper to withdraw his appointment of LaWana Mayfield to the state’s Human Relations Commission.

They specifically cited a tweet Mayfield wrote last year. “Being Black in America under #45 (Donald Trump) has created homegrown terrorist [sic] wearing blue uniforms,” she tweeted.

“Do you agree that this type of violent, hateful rhetoric has no place in our political discourse, and certainly not on a commission that is intended to promote equality and justice in governmental services?” the senators wrote.

“The type of inflammatory rhetoric that Council Member Mayfield used to denigrate police officers makes their jobs even less safe. Your elevation of Council Member Mayfield to this commission raises questions about your administration’s stance toward law enforcement.”

In their letter, the senators cited a recent Charlotte Observer editorial that said Cooper should not “look the other way” on the matter.

Neither Mayfield nor Cooper’s office could be reached.

Last year she responded to criticism of the tweet with another.

“I have and continue to be one of the strongest supporters of law enforcement,” she wrote, “but I will NOT turn a blind eye to corruption, assaults, and the killings of unarmed black & brown people. If you are offended by my comments and not the situation YOU need to re-evaluate.”

Mayfield, who represents a west Charlotte district, recently said she is running for an at-large seat this year.

Earlier last year, Mayfield sparked a firestorm when she questioned the reality of the 9-11 terrorist attacks in a social media post.

“I am still waiting for someone to produce pieces of the planes that opened the doors for US Citizens to lose all privacy rights (from the conspiracy theorist in me),” she wrote, linking to an article titled, “It’s Official: European Scientific Journal Concludes 9/11 Was A Controlled Demolition.”

A few days later she apologized for “the hurt and pain” her post had caused.

Jim Morrill

Jim Morrill, who grew up near Chicago, covers state and local politics. He’s worked at the Observer since 1981 and taught courses on North Carolina politics at UNC Charlotte and Davidson College.

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