The Mayor of Russell has reached out with a letter of support to an Asian American Kansas Legislator who was threatened in a sports bar in the community for wearing a mask, and for his ethnicity as it relates to the COVID virus.
Rep. Rui Xu was in Russell last Friday night after appearing on Smoky Hills Public TV in nearby Bunker Hill. He described via social media the incident that happened afterwards. After checking into a hotel he had went to the bar to get something to eat.
Russell Mayor Jim Cross condemned what he called a “hateful act” which has again “exposed racism and intolerance that has plagued the course of American history”. The Mayor said it’s not representative of Russell’s Community values.
Xu said following the incident in the bar the waitresses “apologized profusely”. Some patrons of the bar also came by and apologized, saying the man is not from Russell, and bought a round of drinks. “People win out in the end” he concluded.
Xu says several community members have reached out to him inviting him back to Russell and he looks forward to another visit once the legislative session is over.
