Former Mayor Timothy Stewart (R) is facing a Council resolution calling for his removal from the city School Building Committee in the wake of yet another in a history of bigoted comments he has posted online.
Stewart recently posed a racist comment online about Asian Americans, as he took part in a conversation apparently concerning racist comments about Haitians by former President Donald Trump (R) and his vice-presidential running-mate, Sen. J.D. Vance (D-OH). Stewart responded to another person who said, “I have a few friends in Ohio, and they said that they are killing and eating geese ducks and cats 1 said so far they are leaving the dogs alone.”
To which Stewart said, “need to bring in some Asians for that, adding a laughing emoji to his comment.
Timothy Stewart is not only the father of current Mayor Erin Stewart, but is also an official in her administration, as Chair of the city School Building Committee.
The Council resolution, introduced by the Council President Pro-Tempore, Ald. Francisco Santiago (D-5), the Council Majority Leader, Ald. John McNamara (D-4) and the Council Assistant Majority Leader, Ald. Iris Sanchez (D-3), is on the agenda of the September 25, 2025 Council meeting. The resolution proposes that,
Common Council of the City of New Britain demand the removal of Timothy Stewart from the School Building Committee, effective immediately, due to his racist remarks and divisive conduct, which are incompatible with the values of the City of New Britain
Stewart had been forced out from that very position in 2019 after he called women members of Congress “bitches in heat,” as pressure amid the subsequent firestorm became too great for on current Mayor Stewart. The pressure of the scandal on the Stewart political machine also resulted in the elder Stewart losing his positions as President of the Chamber of Commerce and the Mattabassett District Commission.
But the scandal did not stop current Mayor Erin Stewart from reappointing her father to the School Building Committee Chair again, within only about two years.
Two years before the 2019 scandal, the younger Stewart had resisted calls for her father to be removed from these three positions, even though the elder Stewart had been widely condemned for racism because of his comment that, “Unfortunately the inmates continue to run the neighborhood,” in an online discussion regarding the city’s North Oak neighborhood, a neighborhood that has a large Latino and African American population.
The proposed Council resolution notes this, saying that, “Timothy Stewart has a history of making racist and sexist remarks, which are unacceptable and not representative of the values of the City of New Britain.”
The proposed resolution reminds city officials that,
the City of New Britain and its Common Council have committed themselves to promoting equity, inclusiveness, and unity, as affirmed in Resolution No. 36567, which was passed by unanimous vote and signed by Mayor Erin E. Stewart to eliminate offensive rhetoric that divides the community.
The resolution adds that, “it would be hypocritical for the City of New Britain and the Common Council to remain inactive in the face of such conduct, as inaction would contradict the principles of justice and equity that the City stands for.”
The Council meeting is at 7:00pm on September 25th in City Hall.
