Black police sue racist message board

[Chris]

(CNN) -- A group of black Philadelphia police officers filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against their department, alleging an online forum geared toward city police is "infested with racist, white supremacist and anti-African-American content."

The suit alleges white officers post on and moderate the privately operated site, Domelights.com, both on and off the job.

Domelights' users "often joke about the racially offensive commentary on the site ... or will mention them in front of black police officers," thus creating "a racially hostile work environment," according to lawyers for the all-black Guardian Civic League, the lead plaintiff in the suit.

A look at the site's forums Friday for racist comments found several possibilities.

Reads one: "In urban areas, it seems [African-Americans] living on welfare in paid for housing is ingrained in their culture as well as fighting. ... Kids, along with adults can't speak proper English or spell at a 3rd grade level, but they can sing among "theyselves" the lyrics to a rap song."

Said another Domelights user of an African-American woman: "She is a classic example of that exact non tax paying, no car insurance driving, bad weave wearing, all the whitey's are racist black women."

The site's tagline is "the voice of the good guys."

Black Philadelphia police sue over message board, say it's racist - CNN.com

 

[RetiredGySgt]

Ahh yes efforts to control our thoughts have begun. First question to ask would be are either of those "examples" of racism actually TRUE? But that question won't get asked cause that would curtail the entire law suit right there.

 

[Xenophon]

Nobody owns the net, they can have racist sites if they like.

 

[DiveCon]

(CNN) -- A group of black Philadelphia police officers filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against their department, alleging an online forum geared toward city police is "infested with racist, white supremacist and anti-African-American content."

The suit alleges white officers post on and moderate the privately operated site, Domelights.com, both on and off the job.

Domelights' users "often joke about the racially offensive commentary on the site ... or will mention them in front of black police officers," thus creating "a racially hostile work environment," according to lawyers for the all-black Guardian Civic League, the lead plaintiff in the suit.

A look at the site's forums Friday for racist comments found several possibilities.

Reads one: "In urban areas, it seems [African-Americans] living on welfare in paid for housing is ingrained in their culture as well as fighting. ... Kids, along with adults can't speak proper English or spell at a 3rd grade level, but they can sing among "theyselves" the lyrics to a rap song."

Said another Domelights user of an African-American woman: "She is a classic example of that exact non tax paying, no car insurance driving, bad weave wearing, all the whitey's are racist black women."

The site's tagline is "the voice of the good guys."

Black Philadelphia police sue over message board, say it's racist - CNN.com

is the site owned by the police dept?
if not, i hope this gets thrown out of courts since they do not have a right to not be offended

 

[Zoom-boing]

(CNN) -- A group of black Philadelphia police officers filed a federal lawsuit Thursday against their department, alleging an online forum geared toward city police is "infested with racist, white supremacist and anti-African-American content."

The suit alleges white officers post on and moderate the privately operated site, Domelights.com, both on and off the job.

Domelights' users "often joke about the racially offensive commentary on the site ... or will mention them in front of black police officers," thus creating "a racially hostile work environment," according to lawyers for the all-black Guardian Civic League, the lead plaintiff in the suit.

A look at the site's forums Friday for racist comments found several possibilities.

Reads one: "In urban areas, it seems [African-Americans] living on welfare in paid for housing is ingrained in their culture as well as fighting. ... Kids, along with adults can't speak proper English or spell at a 3rd grade level, but they can sing among "theyselves" the lyrics to a rap song."

Said another Domelights user of an African-American woman: "She is a classic example of that exact non tax paying, no car insurance driving, bad weave wearing, all the whitey's are racist black women."

The site's tagline is "the voice of the good guys."

Black Philadelphia police sue over message board, say it's racist - CNN.com

If they want to be racist pigs, they have the right to be racist pigs.

 

[Lycurgus]

LOL .......... this doesn't surprise me a bit.

Thanks Chris for the chuckle.

 

[elvis]

LOL .......... this doesn't surprise me a bit.

Thanks Chris for the chuckle.

any chance sharpton and jackson will be involved?

 

[AllieBaba]

They're called "pigs" for a reason. Sorry, but it's true. I've known too many pigs to deny it.

With a disclaimer: Please forgive me, the one detective (now) who I know isn't a pig.

 

[get_involved]

I heard that Obama is going to appoint a thought Czar next week to take care of problems like this.

 

[elvis]

I heard that Obama is going to appoint a thought Czar next week to take care of problems like this.

Big Brutha is watching you.

 

[Diuretic]

I heard that Obama is going to appoint a thought Czar next week to take care of problems like this.

Big Brutha is watching you.

Is it racist of me if I find elvis' quote funny? If it is then I'd appreciate - seriously - an explanation because the last thing I want is to be is racist.

As for comments on that site, I have actually visited it and read through a few posts (a while ago now) but it was very localised to Philadelphia so not of that much interest to me. I also had a look at a NYC website that was pretty fierce too, but it was flogging management. Management flogged back, disciplined the bloke running it and I think it was shut down. But as for either being racist? Dunno.

Cops are generally not so much racist as intolerant of individuals and groups who fall outside broadly mainstream categories - any minority can be fair game for a range of insults, usually behind locker room doors though. Having said that I've visited quite a few online cop sites and while a few of them can get very willing when it comes to discussion I've not seen a lot of tolerance by the board owners of language offensive to members of minority (not necessarily racial minority) groups, it's easy to get a time-out for that sort of language.

 

[Soaring]

I didn't and haven't owned any slaves. Have any of you? The internet is a public domain, and if a white man chooses to cast dispersions toward their fellow black men and women, then that is their right. The black women and men have the same right. So use it, and not bring some stupid lawsuit claiming discrimination when there is none.

 

[editec]

We're surprised to discover that some White cops in Philly are racists?

Seriously...in Philadelphia?

I have never met so many unmitgated Black hating racists from any other town or city in America.

 

[DiveCon]

We're surprised to discover that some White cops in Philly are racists?

Seriously...in Philadelphia?

I have never met so many unmitgated Black hating racists from any other town or city in America.

never been to boston?

 

[xsited1]

...

Reads one: "In urban areas, it seems [African-Americans] living on welfare in paid for housing is ingrained in their culture as well as fighting. ... Kids, along with adults can't speak proper English or spell at a 3rd grade level, but they can sing among "theyselves" the lyrics to a rap song."

Said another Domelights user of an African-American woman: "She is a classic example of that exact non tax paying, no car insurance driving, bad weave wearing, all the whitey's are racist black women."

...

That sounds like they visited certain neighborhoods in Little Rock (like where I live). Blacks even have their own racist radio stations like the following:

KOKY 102.1 FM - The Legendary KOKY - Little Rock

White people should expose themselves to this side of black culture. I wouldn't have believed it myself had I not seen it first hand.

 

[bigdaddygtr]

We're surprised to discover that some White cops in Philly are racists?

Seriously...in Philadelphia?

I have never met so many unmitgated Black hating racists from any other town or city in America.

never been to boston?

I was thinking the same thing, look at that we agree

 

[Modbert]

Nobody owns the net, they can have racist sites if they like.

Agreed

This smells too much like censorship for my taste. Never mind the fact it is a privately owned website and they have a right to say whatever they damn well please.

The precedent this could set would be a scary one. Of course, this only comes now after the website's 10 year existence because of that other case in philly.

 

[DiveCon]

Nobody owns the net, they can have racist sites if they like.

Agreed

This smells too much like censorship for my taste. Never mind the fact it is a privately owned website and they have a right to say whatever they damn well please.

The precedent this could set would be a scary one. Of course, this only comes now after the website's 10 year existence because of that other racial case in philly.

yup
and i prefer that racist assholes be allowed to show just how much of a racist asshole they can be

 

[Modbert]

yup
and i prefer that racist assholes be allowed to show just how much of a racist asshole they can be

Exactly but the most scary thing is the precedent this case could set. All of a sudden you could no longer be allowed to offend anyone on the website without risk of a lawsuit.

If they want to ban the site from work, that's understandable since it probably causes a distracting work environment. It would be like you shouldn't be playing loud porn in your office cubicle at 10 in the morning.

However, if it's privately owned, off-duty, etc then this case should be thrown out of court. I believe this case is looking to get the site shut down in general, which is tossing freedom of speech in the trash.

 

[xsited1]

yup
and i prefer that racist assholes be allowed to show just how much of a racist asshole they can be

Exactly but the most scary thing is the precedent this case could set. All of a sudden you could no longer be allowed to offend anyone on the website without risk of a lawsuit.

If they want to ban the site from work, that's understandable since it probably causes a distracting work environment. It would be like you shouldn't be playing loud porn in your office cubicle at 10 in the morning.

However, if it's privately owned, off-duty, etc then this case should be thrown out of court. I believe this case is looking to get the site shut down in general, which is tossing freedom of speech in the trash.

There is a double-standard in America:

White Racism = Not Okay
Black Racism = Okay

That's the reality. I hope this lawsuit is thrown out, but there is a good chance it won't.