The story below is troubling. Not because it's yet another story about racism in A-merry-ca, *yawn* but because the allegations of racism were leveled at a Police Chief of a fairly large town. And even more troubling , the charges are being made by some of his own officers.
This is a complaint in a lawsuit, so take it for what it's worth. Still, I can't help but read it and think about all those township cops and state troopers in Jersey, and the accusations of profiling in the past. I have been stopped in the garden state a couple of times myself, and fortunately, I had all my shit together, so I didn't end up in the back of a squad car with some racist cop. Remember this story, and others like it about racial profiling along the Jersey Turnpike? Well, it's why I worry when I read stories like this.
But if any of these allegations are true, Chief Carmen LaBruno should not be leading a city police department in New Jersey--- or in Mississippi for that matter. And if you think Chief LaBruno is alone; I have a bridge in Brooklyn I would like to sell you.
So here is the story from the AP:
Five Hoboken police officers are accusing one of their superiors of being an "unabashed white supremacist" who routinely used racial slurs and, during a trip to Louisiana as part of Hurricane Katrina relief efforts, donned a mock Ku Klux Klan hood and uttered the "n-word" within earshot of an African-American couple in a restaurant.
In a lawsuit filed today in federal court in Newark, the plaintiffs - five Hispanic members of the department - say Lt. Angelo Andriani intimidated them with his racist behavior.
Andriani, the plaintiffs allege, would often express disapproval of interracial couples, calling white women who dated black men "pigs."
Among the bombshells in the lawsuit is the allegation that during a trip to deliver relief supplies to Kenner, La., in November 2005, Andriani used racial slurs at a restaurant while the Hoboken contingent was dining with a Kenner city councilwoman.
During that meal, the suit contends, while an African-American couple sat nearby, Andriani used the n-word and cut two holes out of a napkin, which he put in front of his face to make it look like a KKK hood.
The officers suing are detectives Mario Novo, George Fonseca, James Perez, Cesar Olavaria, and Sgt. Edwin Pantoja.
My only question would be what took them so long to bring the lawsuit in the first place? Still, I wish them luck with it. Although sadly, given the history of these types of complaints, they will need it.
This is disturbing. However, it's not nearly as disturbing as the crime rate in cities like Newark, Camden and Trenton. It's not as disturbing as the endless number of Minority Politicians recently indicted by the US Attorney's Office in NJ for bribery, extortion etc. They have it all on tape, so don't bother trying to defend them. This anecdotal racist is distubring Field Negro.
ReplyDelete"It's not as disturbing as the endless number of Minority Politicians recently indicted by the US Attorney's Office in NJ for bribery, extortion etc. "
ReplyDeleteThat might or might not be true---depending on which side of a night stick you have found yourself lately.
But for the record; I have blogged about the scumbag black poli-trick-sters in Jersey recently. (I even made one of them HN of the day)
If you are new to the blog welcome. But you really have to check out some of my older posts before you jump to conclusions.
Some of us can be pretty hard to figure out ;)
It's a trip when you think about what's happening on these police forces, most of the guys coming back from Iraq/Kuwait tours are running to their local police forces en masse, and they are getting hired based on the fact they have lit up Iraq with bullets. America is becoming the wild west, with police forces getting loose with their trigger fingers and thinking that just b/c they got guns, it's open season on black and brown people. It's getting out of control.
ReplyDeleteI'm listening to Sharpton right now getting ready to get his paper, I mean, march for the justice on that cop (he was black) that shot and killed that guy due to "road rage" (okay). These cops are out of control. Shady brothers who feel that they can only be powerful with a gun and crime is still high.
The most dangerous are the white men with chips on their shoulders, who are angry b/c they see blacks driving nice cars, going to work, making come-ups, seeing white women riding in the passenger seats, these white boys are mad as hell. They are running full speed to police forces so they can get revenge on niggers who think they made it, so to speak.
I know of a black girl who was harassed and cited because this white cop pulled her over. Do you know why she was stopped and ticketed? She looked like a girl he was trying to mack, who turned him down in front of his cop boys and he wanted to get revenge on the first black girl he saw who reminded him of her. Crazy shit.
Thanks for bringing these cops cases to light. Scary times.
Patrice
No "sides," to this, Field. Please please please don't let the LA Times thing turn you into a mulatto mix of left wing Limbaugh and T.I. LOL The brothers and sisters in NJ who got themselves elected and then decided to feed, like pigs, at the trough and betray the public trust and these pigs in blue are all part of the same problem. Pork. Ok, just kidding, but you see what I'm saying, I hope. Note some of these dudes aren't Frank Rizzo Italians but HISPANIC officers. So much for solidarity with our brown hermanos in this era of anti-immigration and anti-affirmative action, eh?
ReplyDeleteThanks, FN, for bringing to light critical info that we just don't get from the corporate media.
ReplyDeletePatrice is dead-on with this one (no pun intended). This is about people who are supposed to PROTECT and serve us. Instead, they're hitting on sisters and then harassing them when they say no. They're racially profiling us, intimidating us in restaurants, shooting and murdering us.
US soldiers are coming back from the front lines of Iraq, and some of them have serious mental problems.
Interesting enough, I read in today's Observer, a UK paper, that their government is having their soldiers coming back from Iraq undergo intensitive testing. What they are finding is that, besides PTSD, which usually doesn't show up until later, soldiers who were close to the action have gotten brain damage from the constant gun blasting at high volume.
But here's the connection I see: That while the UK is on it and testing their people, our government is not mainly because the FRAT BOY has cut VA funding to treat soldiers for mental illnesses and putting more money into recruitment: A $25,000 bonus to sign up.
Now, these soldiers are coming home, given only a basic test to make sure they don't staccato- blast someone on the way home or beat their wives or after dinner. Now, they're joining police forces and starting to go Jack Nicholson- psychotic, especially in inner-cities, where the work is stressful, reminding them of Baghdad.
I'm afraid that we're not going to hear much about this find out just how bad this is until further down the road when the PTSD and brain injuries get worse, when yet another brother or sister gets murdered and its captured on a cellphone camera for the whole world to see.
Thanks, FN. Stay in the field. Blessings. mac
On the Ellen Iggy saga, I thought the world understood women by now.That is classic PMS!
ReplyDeleteSerious, but about time these cops are exposed. To me its just another version of the out of control police state continuing to emerge here. It rears it head by racist white and "hispanic" cops, and Black cops trying to prove they're not one of the "negros making our race look bad" syndrome many Black cops live with.
ReplyDelete"To me its just another version of the out of control police state continuing to emerge here."
ReplyDeleteAbsolutely.
But were there hispanic officers involved in the racist behavior? It sounds like there was one Italian doing it, and the complainants are five Hispanic men.
Politicians, black or white, being corrupt is so much distirbing as it is business as usual. The thought of squads of racist cops-who are more heavily armed than city council members-is a tad more urgent as a black man. Luckily for me I drive a POS(piece of shit). Here in L.A. I have no doubt I would be stopped more often with a nicer car. At least in some neighborhoods.
ReplyDeleteI live in the same county as this incident. The five plaintiffs are all Latino, the officer in question is Italian.
ReplyDeleteTheir story of racism will be more credible because they aren't black. That's the way it works up here. Don't believe me? Well, look up the Staten Island black teen who was attacked by white thugs... and the way it's been prosecuted as "not a hate crime". Welcome to Northern New Jersey and the NYC area.
In our area, racism is RAMPANT and unfortunately it comes from more ethnic groups than white. In fact, I have suffered more open racism from non-white immigrants! On the job, in the street, they really have tried to treat myself and others like dirt. I'm not used to that and I refuse to tolerate it.
The job opportunities, living arrangements, monetary government benefits all seem to hinge on one thing: what's your ethnicity? I can't get into any more without revealing myself, but I will say that previous posters are correct. Any coalition with the latino immigrant population is NOT happening, by the choice of many in that community.
If Northern Jersey is the way the rest of the country is going, I'm concerned. The people I have encountered in that community seem to really hate us. :(
That police force has three black officers.. and there were never any complaints lodged. It's not because there's no racism. It's because they probably knew they wouldn't be "credible" to the press and the courts up here. I abhor this racist cop. But I also feel some type of way about the massive coverage and awards that will go to these guys when I see so much other ignored racism in the area.
"On the Ellen Iggy saga, I thought the world understood women by now.That is classic PMS!"
ReplyDeletekitty that was august not me :)
awb, you will still get stopped. Wasn't Rodney King driving a Huyndai?
hudson county thanks for the inside info. The people in that part of the country would no more about this situation than the rest of us.
kitty that was august not me :)
ReplyDeleteYeah I saw that, but just could not bother.
But it is good to know that you know that I am watching you. LOL!
I'm doing that two fingers to the eyes and pointing at you thing.
I am a pacifist at heart, but if I were one of those black people in the restuaurant and saw that dude put a "faux" hood on I would have stabbed him in the heart with my fork, Joe Pesci style. WTF!
ReplyDeletethe racism displayed by grandchildren of the 1900 white ethnic groups always makes me laugh out loud; especially when the color aroused group in question are Italian. Old Klansmen must be rolling over in their grave watching Hannibals descendants mock their style.
ReplyDeleteI once was driving around midnight with a white woman in New Jersey. The police stopped my car in one town and ticketed me for running a yellow light. Five minutes later, as I drove over the town line into the next town, another police officer stopped me, this time alleging a broken tail light. So, I was stopped by New Jersey police twice in the span of about ten minutes.
ReplyDeleteMaybe that's part of what prompted me to move the hell out of the United States, although I never thought of it that way at the time. Funny, I drove for two years in France and Italy and was never stopped even once!
Imagine that! Stopped twice in ten minutes in the United States and never stopped at all during two years in Europe. I think there's a message in there somewhere!
so what ur sayin is the "white cop" is jealous of black people driving around in nice cars so we stop them because of that?!?!?!? that is a bunch of b.s. I am a cop and I drive an 08 bmw 335xi....yeah i dont give a sh@t who u are what color you are what ur drivin. if ur black and u have a nice car, i'm gonna throw you a comment...such as nice car...not pull you over bc u drive a nice car!!! that was prob. the stupidiest comment i may have ever heard!!!!
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