City Councilor Rejects Board Candidate Because He’s A Man

A Brockton city councilor voted against a nominee for the city's Cable Advisory Board because he is a man..Gary Keith, a former member of the city's planning board and zoning board, was appointed by Mayor Bill Carpenter to the Cable Advisory Board, which required approval by the city council to take effect..Anne Beauregard, a city councilor, told Keith she couldn't vote for him.."First of all I want to thank you for serving our nation. It's always appreciated," she said, as recorded in a video posted on YouTube.."But I'm going to be up front with you. I will not be voting for you. And it's not a reflection on you, and, you know, your, your – how would I say it? — contributions to the city, and who you are. But we're at a point now where there are more men serving on all of the governing boards in this city, and very few women.."And it's to the point where I'm wondering if I need to go to the Massachusetts, ah, you know, Commission Against Discrimination. Women play an enormous role in our city, and I know if tomorrow the women that work for the fourth largest school department in the city, and our great city — I'm facing two of them now — didn't go to work, I don't want to think of the ramifications that would happen. It's time now for women to be represented and their voice to be heard. So this is no reflection on you. You're a man, and I can't support you right now.."But I'm telling you right now I'm grateful for all you've done, and I know you'll be involved in our city again. And I wanted to be very up front with that. So this is not a reflection on you. This is a reflection on the current situation.".The city councilor made her comments during a Brockton Finance Committee meeting on February 5. They were first reported Tuesday by The Brockton Enterprise..Other councilors during that meeting brought up other reasons for opposing Keith, including his unfamiliarity with the Cable Advisory Committee, comments he made online about the city council, and some incidents in his past..The city council rejected Keith's nomination during a meeting this past Monday, according to the Enterprise..Keith told the Enterprise on Tuesday that Beauregard opened the city to a sex-discrimination claim..But Beauregard stood by her comments, criticizing the mayor for not appointing women to boards and pointing to seven boards with no women. The mayor denied the charge, saying he has recently nominated six women for city boards..The video of the February 5 discussion is below. Councilor Anne Beauregard's comments begin at 1:05:

City Councilor Rejects Board Candidate Because He’s A Man

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