Black employees find noose hanging at work

[cigsandcoffee]

http://www.cnn.com/2007/US/01/05/chernoff.noose/index.html

Employees find noose hanging at work
By Allan Chernoff
CNN

NEW YORK (CNN) -- James Jackson, a 26-year-old black employee of 180 Connect, was preparing for another day of installing cable, telephone and Internet service to residential customers of Cablevision in Nassau County, New York on December 7.

When he walked to the fenced-off area to pick up equipment for the day's jobs he looked up and was shocked to see a vicious, racist symbol in his workplace. A noose was hanging in the fenced-off equipment area, visible to the dozens of installers, the majority of whom are black, but accessible only to his boss and an equipment manager, both of whom are white.Text

[illinoisprogressive]

1. can they sue???

[cigsandcoffee]

5. They are suing.

I suspect that company will be in very hot water.

[Warpy]

7. I suspect you're right

and no company wants that kind of publicity, either.

Whichever of the two is the bigot will be on the unemployment line soon.

[Irreverend IX]

19. I wonder why it is...

That people feel the urge to throw away their jobs and futures for the sake of a single racist statement. Did the Kable Klansmen, whoever it was, not realize that his act would trigger a massive scandal? It's the same deal as George Allen's Macaca comment. Maybe it's impossible for these people to resist expressing their true natures.

[Robbien]

6. They have a case before the EEOC

I really don't understand the reasoning behind such a stupid racist act by the cable bosses.

[krispos42]

2. I think something like this happened recently in Minn, too

Disgusting...

[Mojambo]

3. After the lawyers get done with that company he'll never have to work again.

And rightfully so.

[Greeby]

4. I see George Allen has found new work

:eyes:

[silvermachine]

26. Beat me to it...

...I'm sooooo glad that Webb defeated that creep.

[Viva_La_Revolution]

8. ...

:puke:

[orleans]

9. unfucking real. when are these white freaks going to get beyond this

crap?

how i long to have a generation in this country where hate crimes are a thing of the past (racial, gay, religious -- all of them)

but that's simply wishful thinking on my part. i doubt it will ever happen & i'm certain i will never live to see that day.

[ninkasi]

10. That noose

was about as "tongue in cheek" as a replica of the execution chambers in Nazi Germany. Some things are beyond the bounds of levity, and the cruelty of slavery, and lynching, of Blacks in this country, and the extermination of millions of Jews by the Nazis, are two things that do not lend themselves to laughter.

Funny, isn't it, when people get caught being racist, or homophobic, they try to pretend the whole thing was just a big misunderstanding by the rest of us. I was born and raised in Houston, Tx. I was born in 1943. I can remember clearly the code words, the oh, so polite phrases those who thought themselves as enlightened used then.

The N word wasn't used, oh, no, not genteel enough. No, blacks were "colored", or "nigras", but never the other. Of course, the word didn't change the inequality, or the oppression, but it did seem to give those who thought of themselves as good, enlightened people an out, when it came down to prejudices.

I have lived through, and seen it all. I have lived through, and seen, the issue of equality for gays and lesbians argued. I get upset because a man who is my daughter's age, and like a son to me, is gay, and has to live with hatred so often.

Whoever thought a noose was a cute gesture, or an innocent prank, needs to think again. We might not have made as much progress as many of us would have liked, but do NOT tell millions of us that we will have to move back to square one. That has been erased, and the only way forward in race relations, and relations regarding gender, should be full speed ahead.

[muntrv]

11. The culprit who put the noose there tried to claim that he's not racist and

that he was married to a black woman.

[keopeli]

12. For 17 years n/t

[Hekate]

13. There's a marriage made in heaven

:sarcasm:

Hekate

[TankLV]

14. Who thinks like that at all - I mean really - which asswipes actually have such thoughts in their

pea brains to begin with?

The concept of such thinking isn't even in my universe of thinking.

I mean, some idiot had to contemplate "today I think I'll hang a noose out where all the black employees are - it should be a hoot".

I am truly sad for our country...

[keopeli]

15. Red Herring - CNN is turning an ugly local story into national news. Is this Rove?

Note: I am NOT defending hanging a noose in a workplace to intimidate employees, even jokingly. I am simply trying to illuminate what we know and what we don't know, and to ask why this deserves national coverage.

The question is whether this is worthy of being "national news".

This news started with a legal action. The plaintiffs deliberately avoided going to human resources, but we are not told why. Apparently, (if CNN is to be trusted) there is no substantial evidence yet of racism. Innuendo, hearsay, and bad decisions abound in this situation.

It is no surprise that a hostile act (hanging a noose to send a message) was met with a hostile response from the plaintiffs. It is also no surprise that a noose carried racial overtones to the plaintiffs. Whatever the reason for it, the managers should be fired even for tolerating such an act.

But, before we play the race card (the apparent reason this has become worthy of national news coverage), we should inform ourselves.

CNN says the defendant was married to an African-American woman for 17 years. That's easy to prove. This doesn't mean the act had no racist intent, but it undercuts speculation that it did.

Plus, 90% of those reading these words watched an actual hanging on the internet recently. We must allow that the concept of the "noose" was on the public psyche and it was NOT related to racism from the scourge of slavery and racial prejudice in america.

We must finally accept that we know very few of the details of this incident, save the singular and documented side that has advanced this issue in court.

So, after considering all that, do you really want to spend the next week wondering what happened and watching CNN constantly to find out? Or would you rather see what the Democrats are doing in their first 100 hours of leadership?

My opinion: CNN should stop focusing on these "hot button" stories and cover the REAL war in Iraq and Afghanistan, the REAL US maneuvers in the Pacific because of China and N. Korea, the REAL crisis in Darfur, and the REAL change in US Congress happening before our eyes. Idiots like these two or three "morans" on Long Island are, frankly, not worth our collective attention. The courts will clear it up if necessary, as will the authorities. Plus, this sounds like a wonderful Rovian maneuver.

I don't begrudge anyone for taking offense at this awful behavior. I just want our focus to be on things we can actually change (and are) instead of a couple of right-wing nut cases on Long Island.

Peace everyone.

[cigsandcoffee]

16. This happened weeks before Saddam was hanged.

The noose appeared on Dec. 7. I don't argue that there is the potential that the noose was not specifically racist, but it didn't have anything to do with Saddam.

[keopeli]

21. Fair enough. But, he was sentenced to hang in November.

First, please recognize that I admit it is possible that the noose was a racist slur. In fact, it might be probable. But, my point is that it shouldn't be national news.

My comment about "public psyche" is not drawn on a single date. Saddam was sentenced to hang on November 5.

"On November 5, 2006, Saddam was sentenced to death by hanging." wikipedia

In some communities of people, this was a very emotive moment. There are many soldiers and veterans and their families who were very aware of the sentence. It was no doubt the talk of many circles of people. Viewers of FOX News, for instance, might have felt the sentencing was more poignant than I did. While many, like myself, hung their heads in shame at the sentence and its consequences, it is hard to deny that the onerous and impending hanging of Saddam Hussein, the villain of the Iraq War, had no impact on the "public psyche".

Hawkish Americans do exist, and in large numbers. These people are not isolated in the South. They have every right to their opinion. That doesn't justify the heinous act of hanging a noose in the office.

Time will tell what the story is (hopefully). If the intent was indeed racist, then let them face justice. To me, the noose has a broader meaning than just racism. Perhaps I am the blind one.

I am truly saddened by this incident and hope you know I have no pity for these guys. I simply don't want CNN to turn this singular incident into the "shocker of the month" as a way to get off the topic of the Democrats.

Peace.

[Patti in Dallas]

29. Nothing to do with Saddam

I am honestly rather taken aback that anyone could tie the noose incident at 180 Connect to Saddam Hussein and completely disconnect it from all overt fundamental racism. Methinks any attempt to derive its intent from Saddam Hussein is simply naivete and magical thinking.

If you read the full article and do a simple search on Google News and read the contemporaneous news reports from the noose's original appearance on December 7, 2006, it is clear that it is related purely to racism and bigotry. Trying to link it to Saddam is, IMO, not unlike Bush trying to link 9/11 to Saddam.

Personally, I am grateful to CNN for bringing this incident to light...I want to know about such things, particularly as a consumer. If a 180 Connect employee showed up at my door to work on my cable, I want to be informed enough to refuse them entry and demand from my cable company a subcontractor that does not tolerate blatant racism in the workplace. After all, if the noose was there for ONE minute -- muchless, for an entire WEEK -- and in an area accessed and controlled solely by the two white managers who freely commented on its purpose & intent and who refused to take it down after countless requests, I think it merits much publicity. 180 Connect has handled this situation incredibly poorly -- suspending one white manager with pay (he's essentially on paid vacation) while the other one continues to work (& be paid) as if nothing happened, and the company is refusing to allow the black plaintiffs to bring their attorney to meetings with the company's hired investigator -- and public pressure is exactly what is needed.

That the black plaintiffs skipped the 180 Connect HR office and went directly to the EEOC may simply be a reflection of their perceived reality...the all-white management at the Nassau County location was doing & did nothing about the noose for a week, giving their tacit approval to it all. I'd skip them too.

Patti in Dallas

[tnlefty]

31. Welcome, Patti in Dallas!

Nice post! :hi:

[keopeli]

36. Welcome to DU and thanks for commenting! I have a comment about sourcing

I appreciate your feedback and, once again, I understand how you can take this as a racist slur. Hanging a noose in the workplace, for any reason, seems at best to be inappropriate, maligning, and worthy of discharge.

I want to re-affirm what I am saying: I have seen no evidence that the incident was race related. There is a lot of speculation and innuendo, but no evidence. All we really know is what the plaintiffs accuse the defendants of doing - being racist with the noose. There is no evidence or admission of racism.

Unlike the Confederate Flag, which represents a rebellion that advocated slavery as its primary purpose, a noose, by itself, does not imply racism to everyone. Yes, it has racial overtones to many and sensitivity to this is important. My example of the Saddam hanging is not proof that the motive was NOT racial; it simply indicates that the noose could not, by default, be a racial slur.

You mentioned reading the article and searching google to find clear evidence that the noose was a racial slur, so I did as you suggested again (I had already done so once). I even searched further sources. However, in my searching I found no admission of racism, no verifiable racial comments by the defendants, no pre-existing condition that lent credibility to the racial motive allegation. I accept the motive COULD have been racial, but there is no evidence so far to support that theory - just hearsay.

Perhaps you read or found something that shows otherwise? If so, I would gladly read it and change my mind accordingly. Would you mind posting a link to one or two of the sources that you believe provide evidence of racism (not just accusations)? I appreciate being well-informed and helped by my friends at DU - both old and new friends!

Finally, please understand that I am not defending the "noose hangers". I have learned, over many years here at DU, that being vigilant in calling out the media and the Bush administration on their manipulation of the news (via distraction, misinformation, fear-mongering, and dishonesty)is more prudent than waiting in hopes of learning the truth later. Certainly, this is an important story for the local community and, if it is shown that 180 Connect was complicit in promoting racism, the story is worthy of national coverage. My comments here are simply to hold the media's feet to the fire, expecting them to do ALL of their homework before printing stories as "hot button" issues that are completely without merit.

Peace.

[bumblebee1]

17. I imagine two white men are now looking for employment elsewhere.

n/t

[goclark]

18. Racism just keeps coming! nt

[Occulus]

20. Is there a picture of the noose?

Do we really know a noose was there?

We don't know anything at all about the boss and the other person. There's probably more to this story than we're being told; after all, employees blow their employers' actions out of proportion all the time.

:sarcasm:

Sorry- I'm just mimicing the obtusity trolls that have popped up since I cleared my ignore list.

[Judi Lynn]

22. Just start explaining it to yourself as being similar to brushing your teeth.

Ignore list: It's gotta be done, even if it's a pain!

[AlabamaBrightBlueDot]

23. a little morbid, but here it is....

[yasmina27]

24. OMG how horribly disgusting!

I can't believe shit like this still happens!

[lynne]

25. This story sure destroys the "racism is only in the south" myth.

[AlabamaBrightBlueDot]

39. I have lived most of my life in the south

In my opinion, because of the the history of the southeast US, we have been the major focus in any racial conversation. The eyes and ears of the nation have been upon us. There is still racism in the south but, as a person who has also lived in Texas, Oklahoma, Kansas and Colorado I have to say that I have seen more vile and vicious racial attacks there- not only against African Americans but also Hispanics and Native Americans - then I have seen in the south east. Racism is alive and well here- don't get me wrong, however there is balance and we are overtly cautious in word and deed. Many areas in the south (and I am in the heart of Alabama) are true melting pot - we live and work and play and go to school in harmony.

Of course, I am sure some JackAss is out there now with a confederate flag on his pick up truck and a 'South Shall Rise Again / War of Aggression' bumper sticker. Please don't judge all of us by those idiots.

[Heidi]

27. Kick. (nt)

[lonestarnot]

28. Racist fuckers. Hope they find the perps and cause some suffering.

[mr1956]

30. Why did it take a week

Why did it take a week for the noose to be removed? If this were a tongue in cheek, joke gone bad type of incident the noose should have been taken down as soon as someone complained. There is no excuse for management or the higher ups to leave that symbol up. And so what if that guy was married to a black woman for 17 years? It doesn't negate the fact of his racism at worst or insensitivity at best.

[fishwax]

32. welcome to DU, mr1956

:hi:

[classysassy]

33. A noose on my door

While I was in the army,one of the good old boys,left a noose on my door,I thought about planting a GI boot where the sun don't shine,instead I reported the racist bum to my CO.

[Stuckinthebush]

34. As a Southerner...I'd like to point out this was in New York

The reason I point that out is that I constantly hear about the racist Southerners. Racism is everywhere.

Everywhere.

[BayCityProgressive]

35. I work at AT&T

in MI. One of the managers thought it would be funny to put a noose up over her desk that said "if you dont sell DSL this happens to you". The many African Americans and the union didn't find it too amusing.

[Stuckinthebush]

38. Yikes!

That was a serious lack of critical thinking, wasn't it?!

[superconnected]

37. I had no idea a noose was a racist symbol, never heard of that before

of course I am from seattle though.