With four police officers charged with violating the civil rights of Latino community members, through harassment, intimidation and physical violence, East Haven police chief Len Gallo has stepped down effective last Friday. The Courant reports that Mayor Joe Maturo, who famously said he "might have tacos" as a way to reach out to the Latino community, is forming a search committee for a replacement and called Gallo's resignation an "unselfish act." Well, is it really unselfish when Gallo is "an unnamed co-conspirator in last week's federal indictment"? more ›

NYPD Commissioner Ray Kelly continued to be bombarded by questions concerning his appearance in the Islamophobic propaganda film The Third Jihad yesterday, and admitted to reporters that it was "inflammatory" and "a little much." Kelly added that when you're in his position, it's tough to keep track of all the filmmakers and journalists chasing you down for a quote. "In this job, you do a lot of interviews," he told the Times. This one sounds worse than a simple scheduling conflict: maybe it's time to fire the secretary? more ›

So you know how East Haven, CT mayor Joe Maturo's plan for reaching out the Latino community, which has been intimidated by the local police for years (well, at least according to the Department of Justice's investigation), was to go and have some tacos? Well, activists just sent his office 500 tacos. more ›

Yesterday, the Department of Justice charged four East Haven, Connecticut police officers with "conspiring to violate, and violating, the civil rights" of Latinos: Sergeant John Miller and Officers David Cari, Dennis Spaulding and Jason Zullo are accused of "conspir[ing] to injure, oppress, threaten and intimidate various members of the East Haven community in violation of their constitutional rights... In some cases, the victims were handcuffed with their hands behind their backs when officers assaulted them." And what was the East Haven mayor's reaction? It's time for some Mexican grub! more ›

The NYCLU has filed a lawsuit with the federal Equal Employment Opportunity Commission on behalf of a group of NYPD detectives who say the department's elite Intelligence Division is racist. The lawsuit alleges that the NYPD "has chosen to cloak promotions in secrecy and give the all-white high level supervisors who run the Intelligence Division unfettered discretion to handpick white detectives for promotions over more qualified African American detectives." Black detectives also claim there is a so-called "secret list" from which white officers are promoted within the division. more ›

Ahh, South Carolina. From its racist, lionized politicians to its well-informed citizenry, the Palmetto State is a bastion of a bygone era many of us are happy to have never lived in. At last night's GOP debate in Myrtle Beach, sponsored by FOX News, the candidates pandered mightily to the raucous audience to give them what they wanted: blood. Specifically, sweet, sweet Mormon blood. more ›

Three weeks after a Parks Department worker found a black doll hanging by a metal chain noose at the Parks Department's Bronx headquarters, a Parks employee has been arrested. Fariz Ahmemulic, 28, has been charged with aggravated harassment as a hate crime. The doll was discovered in a garage last month by Anthony Crum, a 60-year-old black Parks worker who has also accused his supervisors of trying to cover up the crime before it became a police matter. more ›

Is it offensive to serve Southern Fried Chicken and Collard Greens to celebrate Martin Luther King Jr.? Almost a year after ?uestlove caused a stir over Black History Month soul food at NBC's cafeteria (quickly resolved!), a tipster sends in the above menu being served today at St. Luke's Roosevelt Hospital's cafeteria in honor of Martin Luther King Jr.'s birthday (which is actually the 15th and is observed nationally on the 16th). Too much? more ›

Well this is unfortunate. Somebody has been posting "Colored Only" signs up around the SUNY New Paltz campus. One was found near a drinking fountain in the school's Humanities Building on November 8. Then after college President Donald Christian wrote a memo to the school condemning the note, three more signs appeared in the school's LeFevre Hall later in the week. Ugh. At least people weren't hanging nooses? Eh, nope. Still bad. more ›

A cook at the Roger Smith Hotel in Midtown is suing the boutique inn for $35 million dollars after two employees dressed up as Ku Klux Klan members and taunted him in two separate incidents. Julius Jones, who is black, states in court documents obtained by the Daily News that a painter allegedly approached him last year donning a "pure white cone-shaped article on his head," and said, "Hey, look at me. I am the Ku Klux Klan." more ›

You know what's a great way to have your wedding ruined? Having a hairstylist you've never actually met leave a voicemail for you in which they call you racial slurs. But you know what helps? Having the city fine said stylist $22,500 for your troubles. Things get a little tricky, however, when the stylist in question starts claiming they were never your stylist in the first place ad that the voicemail was left by an impostor! But we're getting ahead of ourselves. more ›

Earlier this week, an eight year NYPD veteran was arrested and charged with civil rights violations in connection with a stop-and-frisk arrest on Staten Island. Officer Michael Daragjati, who is also accused of being involved in separate off-duty extortion and insurance fraud schemes, was charged Monday with falsely arresting a black man, then later allegedly using a racial slur while talking about the arrest on the phone. And now, another Staten Island man has come forward alleging that Daragjati ruined his life and his burgeoning baseball career by falsely arresting him: "I feel he [Daragjati] racially profiled me," Jared Williams told the Daily News. more ›

According to the Daily News, a white NYPD sergeant in Brooklyn is being investigated for allegedly using a racial slur against a black officer. Sgt. Sean McLaine, of the ever-troubled 79th Precinct in Bedford-Stuyvesant, has been accused of calling Officer Roberto Stokes "boy" several times. Stokes's lawyer, Norman Siegel, said the incident was indicative of a culture of racism within the NYPD: "In the year 2011, somebody calling an African-American officer a boy is simply unacceptable. This incident is part of a larger problem of race with that precinct." more ›

Race cards! Fat jokes! Old ladies! This video of a Manhattan bus-ride-from-hell has got it all. Watch all the uncomfortable fun below—even though you weren't there, you'll wish you took a taxi anyway. more ›

Rick Perry's 2012 Shoot 'Em Up Express has slowed significantly thanks to the candidate's poor debate performances and willingness to help illegal immigrants. Now, the Washington Post delves into the collar-tugging details of the former name of Perry's hunting parcel along the Brazos River: "Niggerhead." more ›

Sanoy Fleming, an ASPCA worker in Queens who happens to be black, found a noose hanging from a company garage. "I was very upset and it made me uncomfortable that no one thought it was inappropriate," Fleming tells the Daily News, so she reported the incident to her supervisor. A few days later, she received a call from "George" in HR. After scolding her for her subpar work performance, "George" allegedly told her: " 'I heard you were upset about a rope found in the garage,' and he said that it was used for 'operational purposes' to lift things." Sort of like how KKK hoods are for keeping warm. more ›

Some NYPD officers caught up in the ticket-fixing investigation were caught on wiretaps using racist language, and prosecutors are working hard to make sure the tapes are never made public, a source tells the Daily News. Phew—we certainly wouldn't want anything to besmirch the NYPD's sterling reputation! more ›

The current commanding officer at the World Trade Center has been accused by a fellow police sergeant of pressuring Bronx cops to make ticket quotas, and of routinely using racist language. In his lawsuit, Sgt. Christopher Groben has also accused Inspector Donald McHugh of ordering him to give negative performance evaluations to two "well-regarded" black sergeants when he was commander of the 41st Precinct in the Bronx between October 2008 and September 2010. more ›

A freshman Republican NJ assemblyman said he resigned last month because of "family matters"—but it's now come to light that Pat Delany's "family matters" had to do with his wife sending a racially-charged email to Carl Lewis, the nine-time Olympic gold medalist and Democratic state Senate candidate. "Imagine getting a court ruling overturned so your name could get put on the ballot. Imagine having dark skin and name recognition and the nerve to think that equalled knowing something about politics," wrote Jennifer Delany in an email to Lewis' campaign. more ›

NYU: it's the home of cyborg teachers, scantily-clad snow shovelers, and Professor James Franco. Oh, and racists—the university settled with an ex-library worker for over $200,000 after his former mailroom supervisor allegedly called him various racial terms and taunts, including a "monkey" and a "gorilla." more ›

Testimony during a special bench trial to determine methods to improve minority recruiting at the FDNY has detailed numerous instances of racism, one occurring a short time after the events of September 11. Captain Paul Washington testified yesterday that several months after the attacks, a bulletin for a memorial service for fallen black firefighters was posted at the Ladder 131 station in Red Hook. The flyer was defaced with the words "What about the white guys?" and the names of black celebrities such as "Gary Coleman, Fat Albert, Tupac Shakur," and "Buckwheat," the Daily News reports. more ›

A former NBC studio technician has filed a lawsuit against the network, claiming that co-workers hatefully insulted his Native American heritage by displaying a stereotypical Indian doll on a noose and calling it his daughter. As you can see from this photo, the doll was wearing a sign identifying it as "Baby Wells," and the ex-employee, Faruq "Peter" Wells, says a co-worker threw the doll at him, saying, "Here's your long-lost daughter!" more ›

Frank Borzellieri, whose controversial ideas on race and ties to a white supremacy group outraged many because he was principal of a Bronx Catholic school with a majority of Hispanic and black students, was fired earlier today. "This decision was reached following a thorough internal review of his opinions and beliefs as expressed in his books and columns, and a discussion with Mr. Borzellieri himself," Archdiocese spokesman Joseph Zwilling tells the Daily News. Man, they finished Borzellieri's entire oeuvre in just two days? They're like Game of Thrones, but racist! more ›

It appears the Holy powers that be have taken note of Frank Borzellieri, who has been the principal of Our Lady of Mount Carmel School in the Bronx for the past two years and has also published material with American Renaissance, a white supremacy group. Borzellieri is now under investigation by the Archdiocese of New York. A spokesman for the diocese says, "Any form of discrimination or bigotry is inconsistent with Catholic teaching." Other teachers complained about him while he was teaching at St. Barnabas High School, but the principal at the time tells the Daily News, "Frank was certainly in his right to say it and it wasn't against the church teaching, so it didn't affect his status at St. Barnabas." Well, which is it? Better ask the Pope! Actually, maybe not. more ›

It didn't take long for someone's disgust to boil over that a Catholic school in the Bronx would hire a right-wing demagogue with ties to a white supremacist movement. At 10 a.m. mass at Our Lady of Mount Carmel, 54-year-old Juan Varela addressed the congregation and condemned the church's hiring of Frank Borzellieri as their school's principal. Varela shouted "This church hired a racist. This church does not like Hispanics and blacks," the Daily News reports. Though Varela left, cops later arrested him for "criminal possession of a weapon" for a knife he had on him, and disorderly conduct. more ›