Phoenix, AZ – A Maricopa County Court official issued a legal restraining order against the spokesperson for a group opposing Proposition 107 on Friday after he sent a public message threatening to physically attack Ward Connerly, a pro-Prop 107 leader.
Anti-Prop. 107 spokesperson Steve Russell was ordered to stay more than 100 feet away from anti-affirmative action leader Connerly after Russell publicized his threat late Thursday night.
Proposition 107 would ban race and gender based affirmative action in Arizona. Connerly is nationally known for opposing government race and gender preferences and was participating in a debate on Prop. 107 hosted by the Goldwater Institute in Phoenix. Russell is a designated spokesperson for a group calling itself ‘Protect Arizona’s Freedom’, which supports Arizona’s existing affirmative action programs and opposes Prop. 107. Russell was not part of the Goldwater debate.
Maricopa County Justice of the Peace Clancy Jayne issued Friday’s court order after Russell sent out the threatening electronic message late Thursday evening following the debate. Russell announced publicly on his Twitter account that he “would not hesitate to punch connerly [sic] in the face if I saw him…”
Russell served as spokesperson for PAF at the taping of a televised Secretary of State Town Hall Meeting in September. During his taped official PAF statement opposing Prop. 107, Russell accused Connerly, who is black, of being financially supported by the Ku Klux Klan.
“Unfortunately, I must take violent threats seriously, especially when they are in the context of other inflammatory rhetoric, such as has been characteristic of Mr. Russell” Connerly stated. “A few affirmative action supporters are quite radical and I have been threatened before. Mr. Russell has attempted to incite hatred against me with his bizarre KKK smears, and now feels compelled to brag about his willingness to assault me physically. I don’t know how stable Steve Russell is.”
Russell describes himself as “radical, somewhat socialistic” on the profile he provides to online dating website Match.com.
PAF is lead by AZ State Rep. Krysten Sinema (D-Phoenix), who serves on the group’s advisory committee. Rep. Sinema recently told Time Magazine that, “I’m very concerned about the tone of politics in recent years. We’ve seen a decline in civility and bipartisanship, and a rapid increase in hostility between those who have differing opinions. I think this has led to the alienation of the public in governance, which jeopardizes democratic participation.”
Connerly called on Rep. Sinema to walk her talk on civility.
“I call on Rep. Sinema, the Mayor of Phoenix, and other high profile public officials who are opposing 107 to condemn Mr. Russell and disassociate themselves from his threats,” Connerly stated. “I have been threatened before and have had a pellet gun fired at my office building because of my stance in favor of the principle of equal treatment for all. No one should be threatened with violence in our nation because of their views.”
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