Actresses Yvette Nicole Brown and Kym Whitley are coming to Los Angeles Mayor Karen Bass' defense amid attacks over her response to the severe wildfires blazing in southern California.
On Saturday (January 11), Brown and Whitley told TMZ they believe Bass is unfairly receiving backlash over the Los Angeles wildfires that have left at least 16 people dead and thousands of homes and buildings burned down.
"She's got a spine of steel, and she's also been a Black woman in America for a very long time, so none of this is new to her," Brown said during an interview with the outlet, suggesting that race is contributing to the backlash.
Several wildfires began to burn in Los Angeles County on Tuesday (January 7). A fire in the Pacific Palisades, a community bordering Malibu and Santa Monica, burned nearly 24,000 acres as of Sunday (January 12). Another severe wildfire, known as the Eaton Fire, burned roughly 14,000 acres near Pasadena and Altadena. Emergency responders are still working to contain these and several other fires around southern California.
Brown and Whitley, who was forced to evacuate her home due to the Palisades Fire, made it clear that they support how Bass has responded to the devastating situation. Brown also noted that all the responsibility can't fall on Bass because she's not the mayor of every municipality in California.
"There are people mad that she didn't fix the fires in Malibu. She's not the mayor of Malibu. What is she supposed to do in a city she's not the mayor of," Brown asserted.
"This is not the time to blame. This is the time to get some resources," Whitley added, noting how first responders from all over the country are being flown in to quell the wildfires.
Bass has faced attacks over her response to the fires and cuts to the Los Angeles Fire Department's annual budget from several, prominent conservatives and celebrities, including Khloé Kardashian who called her a "joke." In June, Bass approved an annual budget that included a $17 million reduction in the LAFD's $800 million budget for 2025.
The mayor has insisted that the budget cuts haven't impaired the LAFD's response to the wildfires.
“I think if you go back and look at the reductions that have been made, there were no reductions that would have impacted the situation we were dealing with over the last couple of days,” Bass said in a statement on Thursday (January 9). “It’s important to understand that we were in tough budgetary times. Everybody knew that, but the impact of our budget really did not affect what we’ve been going through over the last few days.”
California Democratic Rep. Brad Sherman, who represents the Pacific Palisades, also noted Thursday that the budget cuts “relate to money that’s going to be spent in 2025 and were chiefly for training.”
“These cuts, I think, will be reversed, and should be, and they were perhaps ill-advised,” Sherman told CNN. “But they’re not a reason why the Palisades have suffered – this was money to train people in 2025.”
During her interview with TMZ, Brown implied that racism is behind the attacks against Bass.
"I've never seen everyone react like this to the mayor and blame one person for a natural disaster. I've never seen it. Now what's different this time? Interesting isn't it?" Brown said.
The Black Information Network is your source for Black News! Get the latest news 24/7 on The Black Information Network. Listen now on the iHeartRadio app or click HERE to tune in live.