Listen to article \u2022\u00a00:00 min<\/p>\n
Democratic State Rep. Malcolm Kenyatta<\/a> on Friday called for Republican Rep. Aaron Bernstine to resign from the Pennsylvania House after he reportedly used a homophobic slur against Kenyatta, who is gay, earlier this week.<\/p>\n \u201cPennsylvania is better and bigger than this,\u201d Kenyatta, who represents Philadelphia, said in a video message posted to X<\/a> Friday. <\/p>\n He added that he\u2019s calling for Bernstine, who represents portions of Butler and Lawrence Counties in Western Pennsylvania, to step down \u201cnot because I\u2019m angry at him or because he hurt my feelings. It\u2019s because his behavior falls so far beneath what it must mean to be a member of the House of Representatives.\u201d<\/p>\n \u201cAnd when you use language that demonizes people, that belittles people, it\u2019s never about one person. It\u2019s indicative of what you will do to anybody, and what he\u2019d say about any Pennsylvanian,\u201d Kenyatta said. <\/p>\n Along with the alleged slur, Bernstine also allegedly said in a Harrisburg bar earlier in the week that Kenyatta had lost weight, which Bernstine reportedly attributed to AIDS, according to PennLive<\/a>. <\/p>\n Kenyatta was not present when the alleged remarks were made.<\/p>\n In his post, Kenyatta said he was \u201cdeeply grateful\u201d to leaders of the Pennsylvania Building and Construction Trades Council \u201cwho stood up in real time.\u201d <\/p>\n Michael Ford, the organization\u2019s secretary\/treasurer, overheard Bernstine\u2019s alleged remarks and told PennLive, according to the news organization. Ford didn\u2019t respond to requests for comment.<\/p>\n Addressing the incident in a statement Thursday, Bernstine said, \u201cThe allegations attributed to me are false. This is a political attack.\u201d<\/p>\n After news broke, various legislative groups spoke out against Bernstine, including the Democratic National Committee, for which Kenyatta serves as vice chair.<\/p>\n \u201cHateful, homophobic, and racist attacks like this have absolutely no place in our politics, our communities, or our country,\u201d DNC chair Ken Martin said in a statement.<\/p>\n Several Democratic lawmakers called for Berstine\u2019s resignation. House Democratic leadership said it was \u201cexploring potential next steps\u201d and called on GOP leadership to hold Berstine accountable. <\/p>\n The Pennsylvania House Republican Caucus called the reported conduct by Bernstine, one of its members, \u201ctroubling,\u201d and said it \u201cdoes not comport with the values and professionalism Pennsylvanians expect of their state lawmakers.\u201d<\/p>\n Bernstine has been the subject of controversy in the past.<\/p>\n In 2020, House Republican leaders called for Bernstine\u2019s resignation<\/a> after videos of him encouraging his young son to smoke and curse surfaced. Soon after, Bernstine was reelected, and the demands quieted.<\/p>\n