Omaha mayor calls for LGBTQ+ advisory board member’s resignation

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    Omaha, NE (WOWT) — Mayor Jean Stothert has removed a member of the LGBTQ advisory board because of a social media post.

Ja Keen Fox tweeted “Rest in Power Micah X Jackson”. This, in reference to the Texas man who ambushed Dallas police officers four years ago this month. Johnson killed five officers and wounded many others including civilians during a peaceful protest.

The protests were happening nationwide, including one in Omaha, in response to several high profile incidents of police shootings.

Until Thursday, Fox had been a member of Omaha Mayor Jean Stotherts LGBTQ advisory board. Fox said he’s been making posts about Johnson on social media every year.

“I talk about this pretty in-depth on my Facebook page and those comments are still up to be viewed today because I don’t feel as though I have any need to apologize for those comments,” Fox said.

It’s what Fox said after he was questioned about his tweet that caught the Mayor’s attention. Fox defended it by saying “…[Johnson] valued his life and those of Black people enough not to wait around to be killed unjustly”.

“It’s important also to acknowledge that Micah X Johnson felt so afraid and violated by police that he had to this action. So what does that mean in our society that black and brown people feel they need to take up arms,” Fox said.

The Mayor asked Fox to step down from his position, then terminated him when he refused.

“I pick, appoint, and assign people on my advisory groups and I can also terminate those on my advisory group. They serve by executive order at the mayor’s whim and I did not want that person to remain on that advisory board,” Stothert said.

Stothert said Fox supported a cop killer in a favorable light.

“You can’t praise someone who ambushed and killed police officers. To me that’s crossing a line,” Stothert said.

“It’s not up to me to me condone or not condone someone’s actions, I think again my place in this is to really highlight the disparity in both social conversation and social issues,” Fox said.

Michah Xavier Johnson shot a dozen Dallas police officers, killing five, in 2016.

Fox said in a statement Thursday afternoon that he wouldn’t step down “unless asked to do so by my fellow board members or forced to do so by the mayor’s office.” He also said hadn’t seen the mayor’s statement but that he welcomed the conversation.
The mayor’s full statement reads:

I will ask JaKeen Fox to resign from our LGBTQ+ Advisory Board today. Mr. Fox has been an active and productive member of the board but his comment supporting the killer of five police officers and injuring nine others in Dallas, Texas in 2016 is unacceptable and will not be tolerated. I am shocked that anyone would make such a statement.

Members of our advisory boards are appointed to work with the city to address ways we can improve the quality of life for everyone. Members are of course entitled to their own opinions, but paying tribute to the killer of police officers is an opinion that has no value to the good work and outcomes of our boards.

Our Omaha police officers put themselves in harm’s way every time they come to work. Their jobs give them the opportunity to change lives and save lives. They understand and accept the risks and rewards of police work. My thanks to every officer for their dedication to our city and the citizens they serve.

Fox’s full response reads:

On July 8th, I wrote a tweet saying “Rest in Power Micah X Johnson” On July 14th Scott Voorhees, of 1110 KFAB asked “I’m curious, why you paid tribute to a guy who murdered five police officers in Dallas in 2016?” to which I responded “He valued his life and the life of Black people enough not tow wait around and be killed unjustly.”

Today, I was informed by most of the news outlets in Omaha that the Mayor’s office has sent out a press release stating that Mayor Stothert will be asking me to resign. I have not received that communication yet.

The reason I welcome this conversation is because it showcases two things:

1) Mayor Stothert has no problem utilizing her influence when she deems it necessary. So when asked repeatedly to protect protestors from prosecution, her replying no wasn’t a question of if she could, but if she cared enough to do so. When asked how she will hold OPD accountable to the violence they enacted on citizens, during which time police officers were paid over $2 million in overtime, her equivocating wasn’t because she wasn’t empowered to do something, it was because she wasn’t courageous enough to stand up for her constituents. Unless those constituents wear a gun and badge of course. The bias is not new or unexpected, but just made so much more obvious because of this time of social unrest.

2) I want to respond even more pointedly to Scott Voorhees’ question, while acknowledging his interest in this is strictly because of his relationship to County Attorney Don Kleine. I pay tribute to Micah X with the same fervor YT Americans have paid tribute to the founding fathers of this country. If it’s appropriate to pay tribute to a country that during its formation killed millions upon millions of Indigenous, Black, and Brown peoples, then surely I can pay tribute to Micah X.

I want to be as clear as possible. There will be no apology from me. I won’t step down unless asked to do so by my fellow Board members or forced to do so by the Mayors office. If Mayor Stothert is “asking” me to resign, the answer is a resounding no. It’s also very telling that the news was sent to the media first with no attempt to contact me personally.

In regards to Micah X Johnson, America has declared war on Black people for literal centuries, but continues to be shocked by Black people that refuse to accept state violence as normal. You will never see me advocate for Black people to be docile in the face of state violence. The old America wasn’t formed that way and the new America we hope to build won’t be achieved that way either.

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