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GUEST: Gustavo Arellano, Staff Writer for the OC Weekly, author of “Ask a Mexican,” Amin David, President of Los Amigos of Orange County

Last Thursday, Harald Martin resigned from the Anaheim school board rather than face a recall in a special election. Martin, who was appointed by a 3-1 vote last July to replace a deceased trustee, had garnered controversy for racist and sexist statements made during his previous tenure on the board. While serving on the school board in 2001, Harald Martin once compared undocumented immigrants to Osama Bin Laden, stating that they shared common objectives. Years earlier, he also drew attention following his proposal to bill Mexico tens of billions of dollars for the cost of educating undocumented immigrants in the school district. Martin even suggested to a reporter that a teenage girl sexually abused by a teacher was partly responsible for keeping the molestation secret. Martin’s reputation quickly lead to a recall effort spearheaded by the community organization Los Amigos of Orange County. Prior to Martin’s resignation, nearly 5,000 signatures were submitted to the Orange County Department of Education calling for his ouster. Upon news of the resignation, the department halted verification of collected signatures. The Anaheim Union High School District will now decided by September 13th whether to appoint the position or hold a special election. Harald Martin for his part, plans to run again in 2008.