Political dispute among Aurora Dems sparks racial bias, harassment claims

AURORA | A political dispute among Aurora Democrats has erupted into allegations of racial bias, online harassment, name calling and political interference involving two state lawmakers.

The week’s long political melee began when an inflammatory text conversation between Aurora Public Schools Board candidate Anne Keke and fellow APS board candidate Kristin Westerberg was leaked to the media, the public and even posted on social media.

In the back-and-forth text, Keke comments on longtime Aurora Community activist, political candidate and now legislative aide Hashim Coates, a Democrat, not including her campaign in a social media general election endorsement post.

During the text conversation, Keke said that Westerberg was “controlling” Coates’ political opinions and actions. 

At one point in the terse exchange, Westerberg calls Keke  a “condescending bitch,” according to the texts and references made to them.

Coates said the dustup became public on Facebook and led to Aurora Democratic state Rep. Michael Carter attempting to pressure his employer, Colorado Springs Democratic Rep. Regina English, to rein in Coates’ political speech following an online endorsement post he made in October.

Coates called the outreach an effort to “leverage” his supervisor to suppress his First Amendment rights.

“English, what are your thoughts on Kristin Westerberg calling Dr. Keke a “condescending bitch” and your aide defending the white woman?” said Colorado Rep. Michael Carter in a Black Caucus chat with a mention of @Representative Dr. Regina English.

Carter denies that he in any way was trying to threaten Coates’ position by reaching out to English.

According to Coates and other Democrats, the controversy began Oct. 14, when he posted a “voter guide” on Facebook endorsing several candidates in Aurora’s upcoming municipal and school board elections.

In Aurora Public Schools, seven candidates are running for four at-large seats. Five of the candidates are Democrats or supported by Democrats, including APS Board President Anne Keke.

Many of the Democratic candidates for school board and Aurora City Council have supported blocks of candidates, but the candidates have not run as a bloc. Republican candidates for city council and school board have run in a bloc, appearing together in regional advertisements, including ads in the Sentinel.

Coates, in his “Voter Guide,” endorsed APS school board candidates Tramaine Duncan and Kristin Westerberg. Duncan is an incumbent. Westerberg was the former chairperson of the Arapahoe County Democratic Party.

Coates has been a visible Aurora Democrat for several years, having run unsuccessfully in the past for offices, including Aurora City Council, state representative and most recently, Arapahoe County commissioner.

Coates, a progressive, has been involved with or at the center of disagreements with other local Democrats on and off for years. 

He said last week that shortly after he posted his Voter Guide, he received critical texts from Keke Oct. 18, who was upset that Coates did not include her in his endorsement.

“This is Great!” Keke said in a text to Coates. “You are trying your absolute best to pick a fight with me. Won’t work, my friend.”

The texts were sent to Coates after Keke had a text conversation with Westerberg and accused Westerberg of “controlling” Coates, as he alludes to in his text messages to Keke. 

Coates sent back caustic messages calling Keke self-centered and “narcissistic.”

The Sentinel has examined the texts, or screen shots of the texts. 

The text from Coates was extensive, mostly expressing anger at Keke for saying Westerberg controls him. 

The exchange referenced Westerberg saying she doesn’t know why Coates made a social media voter guide, and that she is only sharing the one with all four Democrat candidates. 

“That’s between you and him,” Westerberg wrote to Keke. “I don’t know why he did that. Honestly. Everything I share has all four of us. Punch him,” adding a comic emoji.

Keke responded, saying, “That’s not between me and him.” She added that she has nothing against him, and he can provoke people, but it won’t work on her. Westerberg said, “fair enough,” and “he is who he is,” and does what he wants. 

“And you all are using him,” Keke said in response.

Westerberg questions the statement, saying that Coates is her friend and neighbor and that she doesn’t control him. 

Keke responded to Westerberg’s comments about not controlling Coates by saying, “Right.” She also said, “I’m sure he is your friend, sis,” and “Oh, okay,” in response to Westerberg saying she and Coates are friends.

The way the screenshots were cut, it was unclear whether much else was said before Westerberg responded with the comment that outraged multiple people over the next few days. 

“You’re being a condescending bitch,” Westerberg said. “Don’t insult my intelligence.”

Keke asked if Westerberg had just insulted her.

“I will take a lot of shit from people and will let you guys treat me a certain way, but don’t come after my character,” Westerberg said with ellipses that were taken out for clarity in this Sentinel report.

Keke declined to comment on the controversy for this report. 

That discourse leaked out, and on Oct. 26, local activist Maisha Fields, who operates the Dayton Street Opportunity Center in northwest Aurora, reposted comments about the text on the Colorado Black Civic Engagement Commission Facebook page, which Fields and Sean Moore manage.

“It has come to our attention that Kristen Westerberg made an inappropriate, disrespectful comment referring to the president of the Aurora Public School Board, Dr. Anne Keke, as a dumb bitch,” the post reads, mistakenly using the incorrect word before “bitch.” “Such a language is not only unprofessional, but it undermines the dignity of our school leadership and sets a poor example for students and community members who look to these individuals for guidance.”

At some point, the post was removed, but screenshots have since been circulated, showing the comments.

“We believe that disrespectful conduct, especially in public or professional settings, should not be tolerated.”

The post prompted Republican City Councilmember Danielle Jurinsky to “like it” and speak in support of Keke and Fields, saying she has been able to find common ground with both, along with friendship, despite political differences. 

“Some of us are trying to build bridges while others want to keep the division and hatred fueled,” Jurinsky said in the post. 

Jurinsky then pleaded for Aurora to keep Westerberg out of Aurora Public Schools. 

The news then spread to Jeff Fard, known as Brother Jeff, who invited Maisha and Danielle Jurinsky onto his popular live-streamed Facebook show. The two discussed the situation, and Maisha said she supports Jurinsky and that they have been good friends despite their political differences. Maisha said that Jurinsky has never called a Black woman a “bitch.” 

Fard’s show with Fields and Jurinsky currently has 3,900 views, according to the Facebook post.

Much of the criticism toward Westerberg implied that she was inherently racist for calling a Black woman a bitch.

Coates said he was upset about the growing reaction to his endorsements and subsequent fallout, but he was especially upset about allegations that he was controlled by someone, and the message exchange between Carter and his boss, English.

Coates said he considered Keke’s allegation and Carter’s remark about Westerberg, referring to “a white woman” as racially offensive.

Keke “crossed a moral line, claiming my decisions were not my own and that a white woman, Kristin Westerberg, was controlling me,” Coates said. “I was raised to believe that no one owns my body or my mind. To hear another Black person make that kind of statement was deeply insulting.”

Coates said the statements “echoed the racist mythology once used to justify violence against Black men and white women.”

Coates told the Sentinel he did not support Keke because she has deep ties to charter schools, while he was publicly educated, and that he thinks charter schools drain resources from public schools. He said Keke is also tied to One Main Street, a group identified earlier this month by the Colorado Sun as a so-called dark money group, a political nonprofit that doesn’t disclose its donors. 

Coates said English, whom he works for, texted him to say that Carter messaged her about Coates having supported Westerberg.

She forwarded text screenshots from a Colorado Black Caucus chat between her and Carter, questioning why her aide was “defending the white woman.” English told Coates that she had messaged Carter, saying she declined to intervene.

 “She told me she supports my right to free speech and that Rep. Carter should speak to me directly,” Coates said.

English declined to respond to requests from the Sentinel for comment.

“I’m not interested in your story, thanks,” English said in a text. “I do not do drama.”

Carter said he doesn’t see a problem with what he said and that he never threatened Coate’s job and does not consider his comments about Westerberg’s race as racist.

Another text message was sent to English from Carter via text, stating that Coates is continuously attacking him. The message was attached to a link post by Coates in a private Arapahoe Dems group, criticizing One Main Street, which Carter is a part of, and in the post, Coates said he would not be surprised if “someone” challenged Democratic state Rep. Jamie Jackson’s seat in the state house.

The Sentinel was unable to find any other public instances of “continuous attacks” by Coates.

Andrew Short, executive director of the One Main Street Colorado, liked the Facebook post involving Westerberg on the Colorado Black Civic Engagement Commission page before it was deleted.

Carter defended his support for Keke and for having asked questions about the controversy.

“As I have done throughout my career, I will continue to stand in solidarity with Black women,” Carter said in a statement. “This situation is not about me, nor is it about anyone attempting to portray themselves as a victim. It is about an individual referring to the president of my school board as a ‘condescending bitch.’ 

Any discussion that fails to focus on the seriousness of a prospective school board member using such language toward my board president is not a discussion worth my time.”

At the same time, many people, including Westerberg, have said that Keke and Westerberg have since made up. The two were seen getting along and laughing at each other’s jokes Oct. 30, at a school board and city council candidate panel at the Lotus for Excellence charter school in Aurora. 

“A social media post mischaracterizing a private conversation between Dr. Anne Keke and me has been taken down, but some continue to spread rumors,” Westerberg told the Sentinel. “After that angry exchange, I met with Dr. Keke and apologized for my response and for using an inappropriate word. We’ve moved forward with mutual respect. My focus remains on Aurora’s students, families, and schools — and on leading with accountability and grace.”

She said that she rejects the false claim that she is racist or anti-Black, and that the attacks are deliberate distractions meant to divide and discredit. 

“My record speaks for itself — I’ve spent the last decade uplifting working-class families in Aurora, regardless of race, religion, or economic status,” she said in a text. “Again, this was a private disagreement that was made unnecessarily public. Dr. Anne Keke and I have made amends and moved on.”

Westerberg said she and Keke would be knocking on doors while campaigning together on Monday. 

The series of confrontations has highlighted tensions within local Democratic circles, where disagreements over ideology and race have occasionally spilled into public view.

“It’s a very important election taking place in Aurora,” said Melissa Garland, chairperson of the Arapahoe County Democrats. “It’s two days away. Tensions are really high. Democrats are very passionate people and say things that they might regret. Things will be better on Tuesday when we start getting some election results.”

Coates said accusations that white political figures control Black activists have been used to discredit him before.

“Any time I don’t align with certain factions, they say I’m being manipulated,” he said. “It’s a way to delegitimize independent Black voices.”

Coates said he knew that bringing the statement to life would bring him backlash, but he was compelled to persist. 

“All I wanted was to speak my truth and serve my community,” Coates said. “I was attacked, but I’ll keep standing. Our ancestors faced worse and still stood tall. That same strength runs through me. I won’t break. I’ll keep standing, speaking and serving, because my purpose is bigger than fear.”