In Lawrence, with first Latino mayor possible, conflict arises

Lawrence Mayor Michael J. Sullivan is calling on two Latino activists to issue a public apology for making what he deemed "racist comments" in a Globe story concerning his proposal to create a city administrator position.

In a letter sent to local media and elected officials, Sullivan said he was "alarmed and appalled" by "divisive quotes" made by Giovanna Negretti, executive director of ¿Oíste?, a statewide nonprofit working to elect Latino political candidates, and former city councilor Carlos Matos. Matos, who is considering a run for mayor, and Negretti had questioned Sullivan's initiative to create the post before the 2009 mayoral election - just when demographic changes could result in the city electing its first Latino mayor.

Sullivan said Matos and Negretti went beyond criticizing his proposal for the new position, which he said would help him better handle the city's finances and operations, and unnecessarily injected race into the debate.

"This article was both condescending and damaging to all people living in the city of Lawrence as well as all elected officials that have served and continue to serve our great city," Sullivan wrote. "I think it is repulsive that Mr. Matos, who served on the City Council, and Ms. Negretti would use divisive quotes such as 'The city is paying for the incompetence of previous white mayors.' "

But Negretti, who made the comment in an interview, said she found it "laughable" that any Lawrence mayor would insinuate that she's a racist, especially since her organization has sued the city three times in the last eight years over voting rights violations.

"The government of Lawrence has been run by white mayors. This is fact. Now all of a sudden, after a demographic shift in the city, they want to change the dynamics and create this new position."

Negretti and Matos say Sullivan's plan in effect would weaken the mayor's position, by shifting some decision-making prerogatives from the mayor to an unelected city employee. And, Negretti said, it was unlikely - based on the city's past - that the person hired would be Latino.

This year, city officials reported that for the first time in history, more than half of the city's 34,000 registered voters are Latino. More than 70 percent of Lawrence's 71,000 residents are Latino.

Since the city's incorporation in the 1840s, all of Lawrence's elected mayors have been white. In 2001, Dominican-born Marcos Devers was appointed interim mayor of Lawrence for a short time by the City Council following the resignation of Patricia Dowling, becoming the first Latino in state history to lead a municipality. But no Massachusetts city has ever elected a Latino for mayor.

Sullivan, who is barred by term limits and cannot run for a third term, said his proposal has nothing to do with electoral politics but rather is aimed at getting the city back into fiscal shape.

In February, the state Department of Revenue issued a report recommending that Lawrence create a new city administrator position that would coordinate city operations, oversee firing and hiring, and manage city government business. These jobs are currently handled by three people - the finance director, human resource director, and the city attorney.

The department made the recommendations after conducting an audit of the city's finances, at the invitation of Sullivan, and concluding that Lawrence was heading toward an "inevitable fiscal crisis" that could lead to a state takeover of city government.

Sullivan said residents of all backgrounds should come together and help solve the city's problems. He called on residents to pressure Matos and Negretti to apologize for their comments.

"I am personally offended by the actions of these individuals and the groups that they affiliate themselves with," Sullivan said in his letter. "The city of Lawrence deserves better."

Matos and Negretti said they have no plans to apologize. Matos defended Negretti's comment, calling it "a factual statement."

"The intent is not a personal attack," he said.

Richard Padova, a government professor at Northern Essex Community College, said conflicts over ethnic politics are nothing new in Lawrence, a working-class city that has always attracted immigrants. "I can see why [Sullivan] would be offended, but to get riled up by it now seems out of place," he said.

Padova said most residents agree that something drastic has to be done to avoid more budget battles in Lawrence that last year pushed the city to the brink of a shutdown three times. But he said many Hispanic residents have also often felt slighted in important decisions involving the city.

"I don't think it's the intent" with this proposal for the new position, said Padova. "However, all of this is a preview of the 2009 election."

Russell Contreras can be reached at rcontreras@globe.com.