The plaintiffs in the class-action suit also are seeking unspecifiedfinancial damages available under the Civil Right$ Act forPhiladelphia’s 2,300 African-American police officers.
A group of black Philadelphia police officers filed a federal lawsuitThursday against their department, alleging an online forum gearedtoward city police is “infested with racist, white supremacist andanti-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 commentaryon the site … or will mention them in front of black policeofficers,” thus creating “a racially hostile work environment,”according to lawyers for the all-black Guardian Civic League, the leadplaintiff 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 onwelfare in paid for housing is ingrained in their culture as well asfighting. … Kids, along with adults can’t speak proper English orspell 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 isa classic example of that exact non tax paying, no car insurancedriving, bad weave wearing, all the whitey’s are racist black women.”
The site’s tagline is “the voice of the good guys.”