Glendale Councilman Zareh Sinanyan apologizes for racist postings

After weeks of controversy, a Glendale councilman has apologized for posting racist, homophobic and vulgar comments on YouTube, saying he was remorseful for his actions.

Glendale Councilman Zareh Sinanyan, whose comments were posted several years ago, apologized from the dais during Tuesday’s council meeting.

“It truly does not matter to me if you’re Armenian or Latino or Anglo or Korean. It doesn’t matter if you’re gay or straight. It doesn’t matter if you’re Christian, Jewish, Muslim or Hindu,” Sinanyan said.

“As my life experiences have shown, the only thing that matters to me is that I want to serve Glendale.”

Last month, Sinanyan publicly confessed to making the comments, many of which appeared centered around Armenia’s geopolitical enemies. While he admitted that he had posted the remarks, some in the community pushed for a full apology.

“If I have not gone far enough, let me be clear: I apologize to anyone who may have been offended by my past comments,” Sinanyan said. “I am truly sorry.”

The posted comments surfaced in March, just weeks before the election, but Sinanyan would not immediately say whether he wrote them. He lost several high-profile endorsements — including Rep. Adam Schiff (D-Burbank) — and was at risk of losing his seat on a city commission.

Councilwoman Laura Friedman, whom Sinanyan called a liar at the time, became a target for his supporters, some of whom said she fabricated the comments to smear a political contender.

“I do hope your supporters stop saying it’s a conspiracy by me against you as happened last week outside of these chambers,” Friedman said. “I sincerely believe that we can work together.”

brittany.levine@latimes.com