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Last May, New Times ran a story about a Barry University technician who found a noose in his work shed and was fired after reporting it to cops. The incident, it turned out, was a symbol of a larger problem: Stacks of lawsuits showed the private Catholic university had a history of racial tension.
Now there’s another suit.
When the story ran, some people dismissed Oswald Jones, a Jamaican-born technician, as merely a disgruntled employee. They argued the noose was actually just a piece of rope and that he had blown things out of proportion. But on December 21, the U.S. Equal Opportunity Board made a rare finding in Jones’s favor.
Now he’s taking the prestigious university to court with this contention: “[He] was terminated out of retaliation” and has suffered “emotional pain and mental anguish,” according to the lawsuit.
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Jeremy Jones, a spokesperson for the school, says he cannot comment on pending litigation.
Oswald Jones has since gotten a new job. He grins as he hands Riptide a copy of the lawsuit. “I want justice and a day in court,” he says.
