Discrimination is wrong, whether it be overt or reverse

[CatWoman]

A federal appeals court has ruled that a race discrimination lawsuit against DeKalb County Chief Executive Officer Vernon Jones and other top county officials can go to trial.

The suit, filed in 2004 by two current and two former county employees, alleges that DeKalb officials replaced white managers in the county parks department with African-Americans in a scheme to create a "darker administration" to reflect DeKalb's racial makeup.

In a 122-page ruling, U.S. District Court Judge William Duffey, while dismissing some claims in the lawsuit, said a jury must decide if the employees were subjected to a hostile work environment and wrongfully terminated or forced to resign.

The lawsuit was filed by three whites -- Becky Kelley, Michael Bryant and John Drake -- and one black, Herbert Lowe, who claims he was fired because he refused to discriminate against white managers.

Jones, executive assistant Richard Stogner, parks director Marilyn Boyd Drew and assistant administrator Morris Williams deny all allegations in the lawsuit. The judge dismissed defendant Joe Stone, DeKalb's director of human resources, from the lawsuit.

Ann Kimbrough, Jones' chief of staff, said the only county official who could comment on the lawsuit was the county attorney, who was not available for comment because Friday was a holiday.

http://www.ajc.com/metro/content/metro/dekalb/stories/2006/11/24/1124deksuit.html

[silverojo]

1. When a black man is fired

For not obeying orders to discriminate against white people, that's one truly sick state of affairs.