John Hawk, the District 5 representative for the Imperial County Board of Supervisors, is facing intense public scrutiny and calls for a formal apology from Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe leaders following comments he made during a recent transportation commission meeting.
The controversy stems from Hawk’s description of public comments made by members of the Quechan Indian Tribe. Hawk characterized the interaction as "brutal" and stated that he felt he was being "scalped."
The remarks have sparked outrage among community members and tribal leaders, who view the language as a racial slur and an affront to the Native American constituents Hawk represents.
Ramona Darby, a local resident, took to social media to challenge the supervisor’s perspective. "Supervisor Hawk, if 75 Quechan tribal members attending a meeting to advocate for their community made you feel like you were being 'scalped,' how do you truly view the Native American constituents you were elected to represent?" Darby wrote.
The tension carried over into a subsequent Board of Supervisors meeting, where Michael Jack of the Fort Yuma Quechan Indian Tribe addressed the board directly. Jack emphasized that the intent of the original meeting was to secure support for the reconstruction of the Picacho Road Bridge, not to personally attack the supervisor.
"All in all it was so much of a racial slur, saying that he felt like he was scalped," Jack said. "The point and the intent in the meeting that we had with Supervisor Hawk was not to make him feel scalped; the point of the conversation was to get the Imperial County Board of Supervisors to back and to support the reconstruction of the Picacho Road Bridge."
Jack concluded his statement by formally requesting a signed apology from the entire Board of Supervisors to the tribal community.
During the same meeting, representative John Hawk responded:
"I apologize for my comments that were insensitive, but I've spent no fewer than ten ten trips to the tribe areas. Meeting with different people there, met with three times with the council and numerous calls to Jonathan, your tribal president. Is it president? What's the term? Yeah, he's your president. If an advisory council would be something that you guys would like to be a part of, or start or form it, then I'd be more than happy to work with you."
Efforts to reach Supervisor Hawk for comment have been unsuccessful. The board’s chairwoman Peggy Price and District 2 Supervisor Martha Cardenas-Singh also did not respond to requests for comment by press time.
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