Scott Israel campaign consultant resigns after using racial slur to describe Sheriff Gregory Tony
A political consultant and activist under fire for using the racial slur “house n-----” to describe Broward Sheriff Gregory Tony has resigned from Scott Israel’s campaign for sheriff.
Tony and Israel, the sheriff he replaced, are battling for the county’s top law enforcement job ahead of the Aug. 18 Democratic primary election.
Terry Scott, a Black supporter of Israel’s, said in a video posted over the weekend on social media that Tony came to Broward County with an arrogant attitude.
“Tony came as arrogance — like we owe him something, like he was the house n-----,” Scott said.
That prompted calls from Tony, Broward County’s first Black sheriff, for Israel to disavow the remarks and fire Scott.
In a statement, Amy Rose, a spokeswoman for Israel, said Scott is no longer working on Israel’s campaign.
“Sheriff Israel strongly condemns the language used in a video by Terry Scott, an African American community activist,” Rose said. “This language has absolutely no place in our society, and he (Scott Israel) believes it was an unacceptable choice of words. Mr. Scott has since resigned his role in our campaign and political committee.”
Scott said he made a joint decision with Israel to resign as a paid consultant, but he is not apologizing for his choice of words. He said he was not speaking on behalf of the campaign in his video.
“I don’t want to apologize for anything I said,” Scott said. “He deserves it. It’s the truth, and I won’t take it back. I am a Black man. There is nothing racist in what I can say to another Black man.”
“I don’t want to apologize for anything I said. He deserves it. It’s the truth, and I won’t take it back. I am a Black man. There is nothing racist in what I can say to another Black man.”","additional_properties":{"comments":1/83/8,"inline_comments":1/83/83/4,"_id":"37VZ4L6WSZGOPNIBEOXLKECZ4Y
Terry Scott, community activist and former Israel campaign consultant
A political committee affiliated with Israel’s campaign has paid Scott $21,000 since November, campaign finance records show.
Scott said he’ll continue supporting Israel as an unpaid activist.
“I am a free, mortal man,” Scott said. “I can say what I want to say. Now, I am going to call him more than a house n-----,”
In a statement, Tony called on Israel’s political team to refrain from using terms that are “racist, hateful and prejudiced.”
“Anyone serving or seeking to serve Broward County should have zero tolerance, a moral compass against racism, and must not condone abusive or divisive language driven by hatred,” Tony said. “It has no place in our community. It only fractures our ability to unite.”
Broward County Mayor Dale Holness, a Tony supporter, also criticized Scott’s use of the N-word.
“It is wrong for him to use that kind of language,” he said. “There are other ways to have political discourse and disagree and fight for candidates without using that kind of language.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis ousted Israel from office in January 2019, citing failures made by the Broward Sheriff’s Office during mass shootings at the Fort Lauderdale airport and Marjory Stoneman Douglas High School. He appointed Tony to serve in the role.
Israel is now trying to reclaim his post, calling his removal a politically-motivated ouster by Republicans in Tallahassee.
Voters will decide the winner of the Democratic race on Aug. 18, and the winner will face a Republican challenger in November.
Other candidates in the Democratic race include retired BSO Col. Al Pollock and former BSO deputies Willie Jones, Andrew Smalling and Santiago Vazquez Jr.
Skyler Swisher can be reached at sswisher@sunsentinel.com, 561-243-6634 or @SkylerSwisher.
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