During the Nov. 4 Fountain Hills Town Council meeting, a decade-long resident, Ms. Villa-Watkins, approached the lectern to deliver remarks during Call to the Public. After politely clarifying that she is from Asia—not South America—following the clerk’s mispronunciation of her name, Mayor Gerry Friedel abruptly questioned her residency.
Exchange:
Friedel: “What town are you in? What town do you live in?”
Villa-Watkins: “I live here. Over a decade.”
Friedel: “Fountain Hills?”
Villa-Watkins: “Yes.”
Friedel: “Currently?”
Villa-Watkins: “What is this question?”
After the meeting, Ms. Villa-Watkins sent an email to Friedel and the full Council, requesting an apology that included the following:
“Yes, I am a Fountain Hills resident. What I did not respond back to you last night is, who did you mistake me for?
“What you DID accomplish last night by questioning my residency in FH, before I was even allowed to speak, was you showed your true colors. And for your future reference, I am an AMERICAN citizen and my father, as well. He served in 3 foreign wars for our country. He is also a purple heart recipient – just in case you have other ulterior motives.”
It is troubling that Mayor Friedel, who entered office amid controversy over his racist and xenophobic social-media posts and later joined the ROT-supported council majority that voted to “ban” DEI, publicly challenged and disrespected the only person of color to address the Council during the meeting.
