Louise Carter-King
Louise Carter-King is the first female mayor of Gillette, Wyoming.[1] Carter is frequently interviewed in international U.S. press because Gillete is a center of the coal industry in Wyoming.
Family
Carter-King's's father, Herb Carter, was one of the previous mayors of the city.[2] Her husband works in the coal industry.[2]
Positions
Mayor Carter-King resigned January 7 2021[3]. The Mayor stepped down over 500 'disparaging and disrespectful' texts and emails Ending a embattled and highly controversial 2 terms as mayor starting in 2014. Ironically the mayor was instrumental in causing the resignation of Councilman Shay Lundvall [4]over comments liked on a local citizens Facebook posts. Councilman Lundvall was reelected to the council with strong public support after his forced resignation.
Arts
Carter-King is supportive of the local arts industry.[5]
Coal industry
Gillete is very dependent on Coal mining and is a boom town at the center of the Wyoming fossil fuel industry.[6] Carter-King has expressed opinions throughout her career about the coal industry.[6]
After a 2017 policy change by president Trump loosening regulations on cool, Carter-King was mildly optimistic about how that would effect the local economy, while noting other trends causing the closure of coal companies.[7][8]
The predicted eturn never came—a convergence of energy market changes favoring non-coal fossil fuels and reducing the viability of coal.[2] After the 2020 elections, she expressed interest in talking with the Biden Administration about how to recover jobs in Gillete due to the failing local coal industry.[1] Carter-King acknowledges the larger forces that reversed the opportunities they were hoping for during the Trump administration.[2]
Muslim rights
When anti-muslim protestors attempted to prevent creation of a mosque in Gillete in 2016, Carter King supported rule of law and condemning discrimination.[9][10]
Controversies
After the city council rebuked a counselor for public sexist actions in June 2020, local community groups protested Carter-Kings administration.[11]
References
- ^ a b McKim, Cooper. "Gillette Mayor Sees "Marked Difference" From 2016 Presidential Election". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ a b c d Opinion by John D. Sutter Video by McKenna Ewen. "Opinion: This town powered America for decades. What do we owe them?". CNN. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ https://www.gillettenewsrecord.com/news/local/article_97f3bec6-a55e-53be-8a7b-b28dfa7845aa.html
- ^ https://www.gillettenewsrecord.com/news/local/article_91ef90ef-979f-5a91-b482-ab7aeb191731.html
- ^ "Can the Arts Save These Struggling Towns in Postindustrial America?". OZY. 2017-08-30. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ a b "'Energy capital of the nation' reacts to new climate orders; mayor says she's 'ready to talk' to Biden". CBS 42. 2021-01-28. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ "Mayor Of Wyoming Coal Town Reacts To Trump's Climate Order". NPR.org. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ "President Trump's Rollback of Coal Rules Electrifies Wyoming Workers". K2 Radio. Associated Press. April 2, 2017. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ Ahtone, Tristan. "Wyoming town abandons mosque opposition, pivots to anti-refugee rhetoric". america.aljazeera.com. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
"People would call and say 'is the city going to allow a mosque to locate here?' and of course, we answered, We would allow any church as long as it was zoned correctly."
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link) - ^ Bryan, Miles. "Gillette's First Mosque Draws Anti-Refugee Anger". www.wyomingpublicmedia.org. Retrieved 2021-02-27.
- ^ Exchange, Greg Johnson Gillette News Record Via Wyoming News. "Protesters seek ouster of Gillette mayor after councilman's resignation". Casper Star-Tribune Online. Retrieved 2021-02-27.