July 10, 2007
Speaker Quinn Officially Fires Viola Plummer
City Council Speaker Christine Quinn fired Councilman Charles Barron's chief of staff Viola Plummer yesterday. Quinn had required Plummer to sign a letter agreeing to behave during meetings, after Plummer heckled Quinn during a meeting about street namings and made reference to an "assassination" of Councilman Leroy Comrie, but Plummer refused (she has maintained that she meant a "assassination" of Comrie's character and/or political prospects). And Plummer filed a $1 million racial discrimination suit against Quinn.
Plummer's lawyer says that Quinn has no authority to fire Plummer under the city charter (though Quinn supposedly checked the charter to make sure she could). NYC IndyMedia reported that Plummer's lawsuit charges Quinn of "abuse of power, racial discrimination, violation of the First Amendment, and violation of due process." The case is due in Federal Court on September 24.
But Plummer still went to work yesterday. Barron escorted Plummer to work, and though Plummer's ID card was deactivated, she received a visitor's pass to enter the building where Barron's offices are located. Plummer says she'll volunteer for Barron's staff and still attend council meetings, which she can do as a visitor.
And some wonder if this dispute will help Quinn's plans to run for mayor. Some pundits tell the Sun she needs to build a reputation for toughness. Civil rights attorney Norman Siegel, though, finds the firing "constitutionally suspect."
Photograph from NYC IndyMedia
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A councilman should be able to hire any aides he chooses. Mr. Quinn is trying to show she's as mean and tough as she looks.
Barron is a criminal who tries to incite riots to serve his own political interests and should be arrested.
I'm regretting voting for her. God Bless you Mr. Barron, you keep fighting, you have a lot of supporters.
More proof that Quinn is a an evil , wothless cunt.
Her and Giff Miller have transformed the Speaker's office from 'representative of the people' to 'takes crazy kickbacks from area developers'. She's advocated perhaps the most caustic urban development policies the city has ever encounted , eagerly eliminating the middle and working classes from NYC neighborhoods.
Whats worse is that whenever Quinn pushes through some bastardized legislation, she follows up the next day with a media frenzy about how hard it is to be a woman, a lesbian, a gay catholic, etc. Honestly, who the fuck cares? This is NYC , not the midwest. We like women, gays, and catholics - straight or gay.
Hopefully more actions like this will help people see through her constant pr bullshit. She's one of the worst things to ever happen in nyc-- the sooner she's out the door the better we all are.
"She's one of the worst things to ever happen in nyc-- the sooner she's out the door the better we all are."
You're talking about Plummer's racist ass, right?
When does Bernie Goetz get a street named after him?
some of the comments on gothamist make me laugh... Barron does not represent the Black community, only himself. He needs the media uproar to keep himself relevant. On the same note, Plummer should be fired for threating a colleague. With relics of the 60s like these two using ever chance to insight racial issues, our community can never move forward.
Yeah, Quinn is grandstanding and she may not be doing herself any favors. However, Barron is doing the same. He is a one trick politician who can only play the race card. I will never forgive him for coddling Robert Mugabe when he visited NYC a few years back. Look where Zimbabwe is now.
my my my, the white supremacy meeting just let out.
14 words, purity, mixing, for the future of our children, 14 words.
I like 14 words.
There's a lot to be worked out here, but I think we should all take exception to the claims of racial discrimination. Racial discrimination is a real problem in this world and Viola Plummer is undermining the strength of future, legitimate discrimination suits by making what is so clearly a clash of styles and personalities a racial issue. Christine Quinn is obviously not a racist - the mere fact that she's navigated her way to one of the top positions in one of the most ethinically diverse representitive bodies in the country - our city council - speaks to that. Whether or not Quinn had cause to fire Plummer, Plummer has no basis to claim racial discrimination and is creating a "boy who cried wolf" situation. Moreover, if Plummer doesn't have the savvy and smarts to file a lawsuit for unjust termination (a suit she might win) I have to wonder if she understands the legal system well enough to be involved in legislation.
#8...what are you talking about?
Now we see what an evil witch this Quinn really is.
Her cozyness with corporate stances and racial divisiveness shows her true colors.
And, it's not pretty.
Viola Plummer's background:
"In 1985, she stood trial with seven co-defendants on charges of plotting to crash out of prison two members of the gang that pulled off the 1981 Brink's armored car robbery in which a guard and two cops were killed in Rockland County. Acquitted of the most serious charges, other members of the group, including Plummer's son Robert Taylor, were convicted."
Obviously this goes way beyond "social activism". Apparently Viola Plummer still thinks it's still the 1960s. She needs to stop whining and expecting special treatment. Can you imagine what would have happened if an aide to a white council member had said that he wanted to assassinate Barron's ass?
Now more than ever we need Mrs. Plummers brand of activism.
Power to the people. Fight Back, Never Again.
It's our time. You had your time for hundreds of years. Read your History.
Viola Plummer: looney blowhard or "extremely intelligent black woman" (her words). You decide.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KKsO0ZzAVXQ
What is Mr. Quinn trying to acomplish, anyway? Barron is an ass, but a councilman should be able to hire whoever he wants to as his aide.
Mr. Quinn's Rosie O'Donnell act is tired and boring. He should quit it.
I'm sure most of the council would agree.
Fight the power (and the urge to smoke crack and shoot each other)!!!
Barron is black supremacist agressor. I have little sympathy for anyone on his staff. Now these racists are going to seek compensation using an anti-racism law? It's disgusting.
When you abuse anti-discrimination law, you demean the whole purpose of it. Some of us are trying to fight for justice and equality so people will treat each other fairly, not for revenge.
I am sure that screaming like a lunatic in meetings and threatening assination of someone who disagrees with you is really the way to build consensus in our diverse city.
Ms. Quinn you are correct, Ms. Plummer does need to go and Barron should also learn that a spirited debate should not devolve into a call for killing. There is no excuse for that!!!!
Next order of business ....
We vote and mr. quinn will hear from us.
The truth will come out. this is only the beginning.
mr. quinn is the divisive one as shown by her cozyness with the mayor and nypd.
she enacted more unjust policies in her first year and it's only beginning.
ms. plummer will prevail. it's our time.
never again.
If Comrie was actually assasinated, wouldn't Plummer and Barron be in big trouble?
Barron and Plummer represent slum districts anyway. We don't have to listen to them.
exactly, like you whities would ever set foot in their district.
Never again. We Vote and We Remember.
You say "like you whities would ever set foot in their district" as if it is a badge of courage.
A minority that systematically oppresses itself. How interesting. Keep it real. real stupid.
Wow, alot of explosive comments on here.
1. I am truely offended that someone would charaterize ANY woman with a C word. That is just disgusting and I urge that comment to be taken down.
2. To the person who keeps calling Chris Quinn a He, well, either your very ignorant or, well, ignorant and homophobic. Either way, attack the policy, not the person, moron!
3. Finally, Plummer and Barron. Where is the line? What if plummer came in with a knife and threatened a councilmember, would it then be correct to suspend? What about a gun? This woman made a blatant threat towards an elected official, in a place that was the scene of a murder of a council member less than 10 years ago. She should be fired, she should never work another day at City Council. Not cause she is black, not because she feels she has the right to say what she wants, but because she as a civil servant and a human being threatened the life another human being, and that, is unprofessional at best!
There is no need to say "never again" so many times.
Hopefully we won't be arguing about Viola Plummer Blvd. twenty years from now.
Charles Barron represents a district with many social/economic problems. What has he *specifically* done to improve the lives of his constituents? (And don't say that he instills black pride because that won't pay the rent and give your children a decent education.) Surely the overburdened citizens of Barron's district deserve better than what they now have.
This whole thing is ridiculous. What was it that so infuriated Viola Plummer and caused her to make this inflammatory statement? The naming of a street!
But I understand Viola Plummer's position in Barron's camp. She acts as his alter ego and says the things that he knows would be political suicide if they came out of his mouth. Unfortunately, it seems that everyone (and I mean EVERYONE) on the city council is first and foremost a politician and they act in ways that are politically expedient for themselves.
FYI Barron and Plummer don't live in the middle of the poor economic areas they represent. They seem to prefer living in nice houses (especially Barron).
I think all three of them should go. It's a distraction from the very real issues (e.g. housing, education, jobs/careers) facing their constituents.
Must be a new record for a city council speaker to get sued. the truth will come out. all her shady dealings, cozy dealings, alianances, all this will come out. the true mr. quinn will be shown for all to see. she is not who the voters voted for. we voted for a woman, not a corporate man.
This woman made a blatant threat towards an elected official, in a place that was the scene of a murder of a council member less than 10 years ago....because she as a civil servant and a human being threatened the life another human being, and that, is unprofessional at best!
In a day and age in which my bag is subject to random searches on the subway, I can't believe she's permitted within 10 miles of the City Council, especially in light of that murder. She really needs to be medicated.
I bet the guy above me is also "karma" dude...same diarrhea of the mouth.
NY1 showed mr. quinn's press conference where a reporter asked her a question on the "firing".
Now you see her true bitchiness, she was snippy and stormed off the stage.
What's with the council speakers?
Little rich boy Giffie and Mr. Quinn are embarassing. Why did the council elect these Manhattan losers?
Next time, elect a Queens representative that actually works for his constituents, and not for the corporations. Liu or Montserrat would wave been better choices.
Sure.. Quinn had to make her bones by taking out the nearest boneheaded black radical... that's just the way it goes. But hey... she couldn't have done it to a more deserving relic. And hey.. STOP saying 60s relics.. these are relics of the post 60s empty headed, nowhere to run, nowhere to hide black nationalist early 70s. You can tell this by the fact that Barron got such a great deal on Nehru jackets that he has an unlimited supply to wear straight up until the year 2025.
This isn't about justice or people power... Plummer casually threw around the notion of assassination towards a fellow BLACK councilman.. also an elected official. Quinn shows really balls AND real leadership by refusing to let it slide. I'm a black new yorker and she already has my vote. Too bad she isn't standing up to the real estate interests.. but that would be like accusing the mayor of Seattle of being in the pocket of the Computer and Aircraft industries!!! She's got brains, talent, class, and she's going places and she's getting a good start putting these dead enders in their place. Now it's up to the voters in their districts to decide if they want serious city councilors or to call up more clowns from the sideshow!!!
As for the "Mr. Quinn" and "Christopher Quinn" wisecracks from the idiot homophobes within the black nationalist orthodoxy ... bite your tongues and eat your hearts out .. that's one hell of a sexy zaftig Irish gal there and her equally distinguished womyn partner is lucky to have her!