Former Vancouver council member apologizes for ICE costume at Halloween party

Former Vancouver City Council member Pat Jollota issued an apology after her costume at a Halloween party stirred up controversy.

Jollota attended the popular Holidays on Franklin Halloween gathering dressed as a U.S. Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) officer earlier this month, The Seattle Times reported.

Jollota, who served on the Vancouver City Council from 1990 to 2010, according to The Columbian, has since apologized, saying the costume was meant as a political commentary and was a “critique” of the agency.

“My goal was to portray the costume in the context of horror, representing the fear that many associate with the agency’s actions,” Jollota stated, according to The Seattle Times.

The screenshots of a Facebook post, showing Jollota dressed up, were posted on Reddit.

One Facebook user joked, “They were serious about raising the age limit, huh?”

“Rude,” Jollota responded.

Vancouver mayor responds to ICE costume

Vancouver Mayor Anne McEnerny-Ogle was at the party and also apologized, calling the costume offensive, hurtful, and upsetting.

“Those are not our core values for the City of Vancouver,” McEnerny-Ogle said.

Vancouver City Council member Diana Perez told The Seattle Times the images were “painful to see.”

“Accountability means more than an apology, it means learning and doing better so our community remains a place where everyone feels respected and valued,” Perez told the media outlet.

Vancouver real estate agent Rae Master expressed her disdain for the costume on Facebook.

“Vancouver deserves leadership that matches its words with action,” Master wrote in her post.

She called for the mayor and the Vancouver City Council to issue a public statement of accountability and reaffirm the city’s zero-tolerance policy for sexual abuse and discrimination.

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