The Los Angeles City Council approved by a vote of 11-1, paying $2.7 million to settle a lawsuit from a black firefighter who claims he suffered racial discrimination after co-workers served him spaghetti that contained dog food.
Tennie Pierce, 51, said after he took a bite of the spaghetti, he noticed the other firefighters laughing. After his second bite, he demanded to know whatv was in the food, but nobody answered him.
In his lawsuit, Pierce said that he was the victim of retaliation for reporting the incident. He suffered verbal slurs, insults and derogatory remarks, including taunting by firefighters "barking like dogs (and) asking him how dog food tasted."
A professor at the University of California, Santa Cruz David Wellman, hired by Pierce's attorney, said the association of a black man and dog food "resonates with the deep historical roots of slavery and the corresponding dehumanization. It's not just silly stuff. It's racially motivated."
In addition to the monetary settlement, the two captains involved were given one month off without pay, and a firefighter was ordered off work for three days without pay.
"I truly hope that my case will make a difference for African-Americans in the Los Angeles Fire Department," Pierce said.