Mayor Donna Deegan is keeping Yanira “Yaya” Cardona as the city’s Hispanic outreach coordinator after completing a review of Cardona posting a video about ICE enforcement that Republican leaders criticized and called for Cardona’s firing.
Deegan previously said Jan. 15 she did not disagree with the contents of the video posted by Cardona on her private Instagram and Facebook posts. Deegan said she put Cardona on administrative leave because she did not follow the city’s social media policy when she posted the video without getting authorization for it.
The video had been taken down from Cardona’s Instagram account but still was on her Facebook account when the mayor’s office announced Jan. 23 that Cardona had resumed her work as Hispanic outreach coordinator.
The mayor’s office said the city completed an administrative review and Cardona “has resumed her duties.”
“As practice, the city of Jacksonville does not elaborate on internal personnel matters,” the statement said. “We remain committed to serving all residents of Jacksonville with professionalism, transparency and respect.”
Gov. Ron DeSantis was among the local and state Republican leaders who criticized the video..
“That’s not how we roll in the state of Florida,” he said Jan. 15 in Jacksonville when he visited Mayo Clinic’s latest cancer treatment technology. “We’re going to respect the law enforcement, respect the rule of law.”
The Republican Party of Duval County had criticized Cardona’s video by saying it wrongly claimed ICE immigration enforcement in Jacksonville is “targeting Hispanic and non-American businesses.”
“Using a taxpayer-funded position to spread misinformation or interfere with lawful law enforcement is unacceptable and fundamentally incompatible with public service,” the statement released by Duval County GOP Chair Charles Barr said.
Cardona, who joined Deegan’s staff in April 2024, made the video on Jan. 14 at her office at City Hall during her working hours.
Cardona said in the video that enforcement patrols were taking place along Atlantic Boulevard, Beach Boulevard and Emerson Street. She recommended people stay home as much as possible and suggested residents could form “pick up trains” for getting groceries and taking children to school.
She said repeatedly if people are stopped by ICE, they should comply. She invited people to contact her for slide shows on people’s legal rights.
Deegan left the door open for Cardona to return to work when she fielded questions from reporters on Jan. 15 about the video.
“Nothing that she shared said anything about anyone who is here illegally,” Deegan said.
She said Cardona “was simply giving the community information that was freely available,” telling residents to understand their legal rights and make sure they have a plan in place for business and family matters.
“She said a dozen times ‘If you’re stopped, comply,'” Deegan said. “So it wasn’t the content of what she said that I took issue with.”
This article originally appeared on Florida Times-Union: Hispanic outreach coordinator back on job after posting ICE video
Reporting by David Bauerlein, Jacksonville Florida Times-Union / Florida Times-Union
USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
