Lorain County Democrats condemn 'racist' card received by city councilman

LORAIN — The Lorain and Lorain County Democratic parties condemned a hateful letter received by a Lorain councilman earlier this month. Councilman Angel Arroyo Jr., D-6th Ward, received a "racist, hate-filled card" in the mail earlier this month, which the local Democratic parties called out in a statement posted to social media on Thursday. "Let us be clear: Racism, hate and personal attacks against any individual or community are completely unacceptable," Party Chairwomen Sharon Sweda and Mary Santiago said in the joint letter. "Public service should never come with harassment rooted in racism or prejudice and no one in our community should have to endure or tolerate this kind of behavior." The handwritten message that sparked the discussion was postmarked Feb. 28 and sent to Arroyo's home in South Lorain. It called the councilman a "drunk a-- fool," said Arroyo would be reported to U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement, or ICE, and used an ethnic slur against Hispanic and Latino populations. It included printed photographs of Arroyo's 2019 mug shot and final court appearance for a drunken driving charge he pleaded no contest to. The photograph was taken by a Chronicle-Telegram photographer and published online with a Dec. 17, 2019, article about Arroyo's plea. The message was sent anonymously to Arroyo. Arroyo told The Chronicle-Telegram in a March 8 interview that he did not know why someone would send the card, and felt the sender may have personal issues they needed to address. He also suggested the sender displayed a "lack of understanding of American history" regarding the threat to report Arroyo to ICE. The councilman is Puerto Rican, which is a U.S. territory, and its residents are U.S. citizens. The letter is similar to one received by Cleveland Councilwoman Jasmin Santana, D-14th Ward, in March 2025. In a Facebook post from March 22, 2025, Santana included photos of a the handwritten card, with handwriting that appeared similar to the one sent to Arroyo. The card Santana received called for her to address several issues in the ward as well as a "white pride day parade," said to send back immigrants, included the line "ICE, ICE BABY," and told her to "go back to Puerto Rico." Included with the card were printed copies of racist memes. Santana turned the card and memes over to Cleveland police for further investigation. She could not be reached for comment by deadline Friday. Lorain police Capt. Jake Morris said on Friday that his department was still investigating the message Arroyo received, including its similarities with the one sent to Santana last year. On Friday, Sweda said the decision to issue the joint letter condemning the message Arroyo received came after she met with Santiago and wanted to spotlight the issue for party members outside of Lorain. "We are reiterating our disgust for anything like that, our zero-tolerance policy and so that those outside the city of Lorain realize just how close that hatemongering is to all of us," Sweda said. She said the Lorain County Democratic Party stands behind anyone who is a victim or target of this type of hate speech, and urged others to do the same. Arroyo was grateful for the party's support. "We must stand united and demand that our law enforcement agencies not only investigate these acts, but fully prosecute those spreading hate and making threats in our community," he said. "Today it may be directed at me, Safety/Service Director Rey Carrion and other local officials, but tomorrow, it could be anyone. That is unacceptable. "We are in this together," he continued. "I will continue to fight for everyone in our community." Santiago did not return a request for comment by deadline Friday. Contact Carissa Woytach at (440) 329-7245 or cwoytach@chroniclet.com.