Tania Fernandes Anderson says she won't resign after indictment

Boston City Councilor Tania Fernandes Anderson said she will not resign, despite calls from her colleagues to step aside following a federal indictment accusing her of public corruption.

"Onward with the people's work," Fernandes Anderson told reporters ahead of Wednesday's council meeting, the first since her arrest Friday.

Prosecutors allege Fernandes Anderson stole $7,000 in public funds in a "kickback scheme" orchestrated with a family member on her staff. According to the indictment, the handoff happened in a Boston City Hall bathroom.

She was charged with five counts of wire fraud and one count of theft involving federal funds. Fernandes Anderson pleaded not guilty to the charges.

Boston Mayor Michelle Wu and City Council President Ruthzee Louijeune have called on Fernandes Anderson to resign, as have several of her council colleagues.

But Fernandes Anderson was defiant Wednesday, addressing a throng of reporters and TV cameras staked outside her City Hall office.

"I've demonstrated that I am a very hard-working, strong advocate, someone who is thoughtful, someone who is thorough, someone who is dynamic, a consolidator of community," she said. "God has brought me to this point to deal with a very, very, very difficult situation."

Fernandes Anderson declined to answer questions related to her ongoing criminal case.

Imam Abdullah Faaruuq, of Roxbury, was among the councilor's supporters who attended the meeting. He said he came because he's known Fernandes Anderson for 20 years and she works on behalf of minorities in his community.

"She still has work to do and to make sure that that work is first and foremost," he said. "She's concerned with the issues of concern for the people of Roxbury in particular."

Faaruuq said Fernandes Anderson should be treated as innocent until proven guilty.

"I want to lift her and give her the strength that she needs," said another supporter, Jumaada Smith. She called the allegations against the councilor "a nightmare," suggesting others have done worse and paid no price.

"People get away with all kinds of stuff," she said.

Councilor Ed Flynn introduced a proposal Wednesday to create an official City Council ethics committee, an idea he announced shortly after Fernandes Anderson's arrest.

Flynn said people are looking for "honest and ethical leadership."

Louijeune sent the proposal to committee for further consideration.