*Civil rights activist Najee Ali is firing back at Inglewood (CA) Mayor James T. Butts Jr. after the mayor questioned his credibility, criminal history and involvement in allegations that Butts inappropriately touched an 18-year-old female high school student.
Ali’s response follows an exclusive EURweb interview in which Butts denied wrongdoing and accused political opponents of exploiting the controversy ahead of Inglewood’s November 3 election. “Who is Najee Ali? Who is Najee Ali? Who is he demanding anything?” Butts asked.
The mayor also questioned Ali’s involvement because he does not live in Inglewood. Ali, director of Project Islamic Hope, responded Wednesday with a statement acknowledging his criminal history and defending his activism. “I don’t have to live in Inglewood to stand up for an Inglewood child,” he declared.
The allegations stem from a September 15 event at Inglewood City Hall. Attorney Jason Glasgow, representing the student, alleges inappropriate touching and has requested surveillance footage. Butts denies the allegations, while Ali continues demanding an independent investigation and release of the footage with appropriate privacy protections.
Below is Ali’s complete statement, provided to EURweb on October 28, 2026. Its disputed allegations and other factual assertions are attributed to Ali and have not all been independently verified by EURweb.
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Najee Ali’s Full Statement in Response to Mayor Butts
PUBLIC STATEMENT BY NAJEE ALI
Director, Project Islamic Hope
In Response to Inglewood Mayor James T. Butts
Mayor James T. Butts, you have every right to question who I am. But your attempts to discredit me will fail each and every time.
You brought up my past criminal convictions as though you were revealing something the public didn’t already know.
Mayor Butts, I wrote a bestselling book titled Raising Hell, with a foreword written by then-Congressmember Karen Bass. In that book, I openly discussed my criminal record, my arrests, and my experiences with the criminal justice system, including being arrested for crimes I maintain I did not commit.
I have never hidden my past.
To question my credentials as a civil rights activist is laughable.
Following my release from prison after a conviction I have consistently maintained was unjust, I went on to serve eight years working in the administration of former Los Angeles Mayor Eric Garcetti. Before being hired, I underwent a thorough background investigation.
And Mayor Butts, you’re absolutely correct about one thing: I don’t live in Inglewood.
But when George Floyd was murdered, I traveled to Minnesota four times to stand with the Floyd family, their attorney Ben Crump, my mentors Rev. Jesse Jackson and Rev. Al Sharpton, and fellow civil rights activists.
When Trayvon Martin was killed, I traveled to Florida to support his family.
When Breonna Taylor was killed by police, I flew to Louisville, Kentucky, to stand with her family and demand justice.
For more than 30 years, I have traveled across this nation standing alongside families seeking justice, accountability, and answers.
Mayor Butts, I don’t have to live in Inglewood to stand up for an Inglewood child.
You and countless others throughout Southern California know that I have been a nationally recognized civil rights activist at the forefront of the struggle for justice in Los Angeles for more than three decades.
So when my fellow activist Yolanda Davidson informed me that she was organizing a press conference demanding an independent investigation into allegations that you inappropriately touched a female Inglewood high school student, I immediately agreed to support her.
And I make absolutely no apologies for that decision.
Mayor Butts, these allegations deserve serious scrutiny, particularly in light of previously reported allegations involving your personal conduct, including allegations concerning your daughter and your former associate Melanie McDade-Dickens. Those earlier accusations must be evaluated on their own evidence, and I recognize that allegations alone do not establish guilt.
But the latest allegations involving a female high school student demand an independent and transparent investigation.
As someone who helped develop the first draft of legislation associated with the Sherrice Iverson Act, legislation intended to strengthen protections for children, I have spent decades advocating for the safety of women and children.
That commitment will not change because you or anyone else attempts to attack my reputation.
Now let’s discuss the allegations against you.
I spoke with an eyewitness whom I understand to be a mandated reporter. That individual provided me with an account of what allegedly occurred involving the student.
I understand that both the student and witnesses reported their concerns to the appropriate authorities.
Those reports are precisely why I believe an independent investigation is necessary.
According to the student’s attorney, Jason Glasgow, you subsequently went to the family’s home and apologized to the student and her father.
The circumstances surrounding that visit, what was said, and why it occurred should all be examined by independent investigators.
Mayor Butts, I also have every right to demand an apology for your public attacks against me and my fellow activists.
At your September 21 news conference, you described the accusations against you as “baseless, unsourced, and completely false.” You also accused political opponents of orchestrating a smear campaign and reportedly claimed there was no documented complaint.
I strongly dispute that characterization.
Based on information shared with me, reports concerning the alleged incident had already been made.
If those reports were documented before your news conference, the public deserves to know why you characterized the accusations the way you did.
That is a legitimate question of public accountability, not a smear campaign.
And now, Mayor Butts, I have a very simple demand:
Release the September 15 City Hall surveillance footage, subject to appropriate protections for the student’s privacy.
The attorney representing the student has requested the video, and according to the information provided to our coalition, its release has been delayed twice.
The public deserves transparency. The student deserves to be heard. And investigators deserve access to all relevant evidence. Your reported visit to the family’s home also raises legitimate questions that should be answered.
What prompted that visit? What exactly was discussed? And what was the purpose of the apology described by the student’s attorney?
These are questions that should be answered through an impartial investigation, not political attacks against those demanding accountability.
I am calling for the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department to conduct an independent criminal investigation into these allegations because I do not believe the Inglewood Police Department should investigate allegations involving the city’s own mayor without independent oversight.
No elected official should be above the law. No student should be afraid to report alleged misconduct.
And no community activist should be intimidated into silence for demanding that allegations involving a child be thoroughly investigated.
Mayor Butts, you wanted to know who Najee Ali is?
I’m the same civil rights activist who has spent more than 30 years standing up for victims, confronting powerful institutions, and demanding accountability from elected officials and law enforcement agencies.
My past is public. My record of activism is public. And my commitment to justice is unwavering.
You can attack my reputation, question my residency, and bring up my criminal history as often as you like.
But none of those attacks answers the questions surrounding the allegations made by this student.
I will continue demanding an independent investigation, the preservation and appropriate release of the video evidence, and accountability based on the facts.
Because protecting children and pursuing justice will always be more important to me than protecting the political reputation of any mayor.
Najee Ali
Director, Project Islamic Hope
Civil Rights Activist
Los Angeles, California
October 28, 2026
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