Embattled Gwinnett County Commissioner Tommy Hunter left a Tuesday afternoon board meeting just as protesters were lining up to speak against him.
A spokesman for Hunter claimed the timing was coincidental, that the commissioner “had a business meeting he had to get to” — but then added that the commissioner doesn’t plan to stick around for public comment periods at future meetings, either.
“I don’t see the need for him to sit there and be berated in a one-way conversation that takes away from the original intent of the public comment period,” the spokesman, Seth Weathers, told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. “He feels that it’s taking away from other individuals who have other concerns outside of what this one group was bringing up.”
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Hunter has been the target of protests since The Atlanta Journal-Constitution first published screenshots of a Jan. 14 Facebook post in which he referred to civil rights leader and U.S. Rep. John Lewis as a “racist pig.” The commissioner has apologized for his “choice of words” in the post — which also referred to Democrats as “Demonrats” — but has repeatedly said he won’t step down.
An ethics complaint has been filed against Hunter and several groups have called for his resignation. Including Tuesday, protesters have had a large presence at each of the four Board of Commissioners meetings since Hunter’s social media activity was first reported.
Hunter participated in the first half hour or so of Tuesday’s 2 p.m. board meeting, as the commissioners quickly approved more than $10 million worth of county contracts. Those contracts including SPLOST money dedicated to sidewalk and other pedestrian projects near Dacula and Lawrenceville, as well as the replacement of a bridge that takes Lilburn’s Harbins Road over Jackson Creek.
But as the first of what would be about two dozen protesters lined up to speak during the subsequent public comment period, Hunter walked out.
The first protester continued on. When the second protester asked about Hunter’s absence, Nash said Hunter was “gone for the afternoon.” The chairman later told reporters that Hunter had informed her beforehand that he would be leaving early for a “business appointment.”
There was an uproar in the auditorium when Nash confirmed Hunter was gone, but the protesters continued on without Hunter present. For about 90 minutes, they called him a “coward” and a “chicken” and asked for him to resign — and also set their sites on his colleagues.
Chuck Johnson, a resident of Hunter's District 3, called the continued fallout "a growing blemish on Gwinnett County's reputation and not just the reputation of Tommy Hunter." Protester Penny Poole described the silence of Hunter's fellow commissioners as "deafening."
“I believe in free speech,” another protester, Susan Clymer, said, “but I also believe that we have an obligation to condemn speech that is racist, bigoted, anti-Semitic or hateful.”
Per board protocol, Hunter’s fellow commissioners said little during the public hearing period. After the meeting, Nash declined to comment further on the situation.
“I think you probably need to speak to him about that,” Nash said.
Hunter's premature departure Tuesday came exactly a week after he left early from a meeting with the Gwinnett NAACP. That meeting quickly turned tumultuous, with NAACP members shouting at each other and fighting about whether Hunter should have been there at all.
Weathers, Hunter’s spokesman, said Tuesday that the commissioner’s planned absence from public hearing periods will be “for the foreseeable future.” In the meantime, Weathers encouraged constituents to email Hunter with any concerns.
The Board of Commissioners’ next meeting is Feb. 28.
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