A Black firefighter in Rochester, New York named Jerrod Jones claims his boss made him attend a racist party while on the job. When Jones arrived at the “Liberal Smashing, Splish Splash Pool Party,” he was startled.
He spotted the Donald Trump cardboard figure at the door, the Juneteenth flags next to the buckets of chicken, and the little gift bags with Hennessy and the Juneteenth commemorative cup.
Furthermore, he asserts that despite his attempts to report the occurrence to the officers in charge of him, nothing was done about it. The party’s organizers, a well-known NYC couple, claim they are not racists and had no idea these things could be hurtful.
Jerod Jones is now suing the city of Rochester and the Rochester Fire Department for $4.4 million.
Jerod Jones claimed that on July 7, 2022, he was on duty with four other firefighters, including his Captain Krywy, a white firefighter who informed them that they would be stopping by a party.
Jones wasn’t aware that he was at the mansion of a rich NYC dentist named Dr. Nicholas Nicosia until they arrived at the party. He claimed that everyone else in attendance was white, leaving him as the sole Black person.
Jones informs Justin Carter of TSR Investigations that he felt uneasy right away while still wearing his firefighting uniform.
According to Jones’ lawsuit against his employment, Juneteenth flags and a cardboard cutout of President Trump were conspicuously placed surrounding buckets of Kentucky Fried Chicken.
After giving him a gift bag containing Cognac, an alcoholic beverage and racist cliche frequently used to demean Black Americans, and a Juneteenth commemorative cup, in mockery of the holiday honoring the day when enslaved African Americans learned of their emancipation on June 19, 1865, his supervisor reportedly sternly instructed him “no pictures.”
“I decided to speak up today because I have two children that maybe one day will aspire to become firefighters, and I don’t want them to experience what I experienced. I wouldn’t want your kids to have to experience that (either)” Jones said.
Jerod Jones added that there were also lawn signs with photos of Democratic lawmakers, and even a woman dancing provocatively while dressed up as a female county legislator.
Jerod Jones Told Battalion Chief About Racist, Inappropriate Party, But Nothing Was Done
His attorney, Nate McMurray, said that Jones later went to his battalion chief about it, but nothing was done.
“When Mr. Jones went to his commanders and he said ‘this is terrible, can you address this? Can we handle this?’ They assigned him to work with that same captain the next shift!” Jones’ attorney said at a press conference this week.
On August 23, the Nicosias held a press conference with their lawyer in an effort to clear their identity. They displayed party photos, but they weren’t actually shot at the party; they were reproductions.
(Courtesy of YouTube)
The Nicosia’s called themselves victims of “cancel culture.’
“I am not a racist. I grew up in East Cleveland, it’s a very diverse community,” said the dentist’s wife, Mary Znidarsic-Nicosia, who claims to have been the one behind the party’s inception. “And I doubt you could find anyone in that community that could say that I am (racist).”