I attended the Douglas County Board of County Commissioners (BOCC) meeting on July 8. Once again, many citizens showed up to their meeting for public comment and many wanted to express their concerns regarding public statements made by Commissioner Teal. Comments were cut off before many of those people were given a chance to speak.
Commissioner George Teal has done harm to the family of Dr. Eiko Browning and the Asian community as a whole. He has put them in danger by publicly stating lies and racist comments about Dr. Eiko Browning after badly losing the special election he initiated on Home Rule. It is disheartening that he, as an elected official, is unwilling to apologize for his behavior and that his colleagues are unwilling to hold him accountable and instead gaslight the community by trying to defend his character while he remains silent. Any person who uses their position of power as a leader of the community to openly and falsely make statements about an individual and community does not exhibit the skill to be in that leadership position. Additionally, Commissioner Abe Laydon gaslights the citizens of Douglas County by declaring there is a place for the Asian community in Douglas County, but does not hold his colleague accountable for openly and publicly harming that community.
It’s really simple. All Commissioner Teal has to say is some form of, “I apologize for my public outburst and behavior following the Home Rule special election in my county. I falsely accused Dr. Eiko Browning, an upstanding citizen of my county and a woman of Japanese descent, of being involved with the Chinese Communist Party to impact the Home Rule election. I let my emotions get the best of me in the landslide rebuke of my efforts and approach to introduce Home Rule to Douglas County. I apologize for those false claims and for putting her family and the Asian community as a whole in the spotlight and endangering them with my behavior. I will aim to do better in my position as a community leader.”
Instead, Mr. Teal doubles down and refuses to take accountability, further impacting his ability to be taken seriously and hindering his ability to be an effective public official in Douglas County.
Nancy Student
Lone Tree