Black firefighter, praised as a hero, says he was demoted because of race

A Black firefighter who was previously applauded as a hero for saving lives is now alleging he was demoted because of the rampant racism he says is in the FDNY.

According to the New York Post, Roben Duge saved two children from a fire while off-duty, but says he had to endure racist abuse and harassment after he transferred to a different firehouse.

In March, Duge made headlines for pulling a Queens grandmother and two kids from a burning home.

“He ran into the house and he just pulled the kids and (the grandmother) and pulled them out,” said Duquan Williams, 27, father of the rescued children. “Good thing he’s there when it happened.”

Roben Duge is a hero! @FDNY https://t.co/uA4IkABIPJ

— LAURASTYLEZ (@LAURASTYLEZ) March 16, 2018

But now, according to the Brooklyn Federal Court, the celebrated Good Samaritan has filed a lawsuit that claims he has been discriminated against by his employer “because of his race and color.”

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The suit alleges his problems began after he transferred to a firehouse in Brooklyn run by Capt. Daniel Florenco. Florenco was allegedly irate that Duge had even been allowed to transfer into his firehouse and told him he should have remained in “the neighborhood you live in.”

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Duge says he was denied basic rights like time off, forcefully asked to transfer out of the firehouse, and when he refused to do so, a white firefighter told him that “if this were back in the day, you would have been punched in the face for refusing to transfer out.”

When Duge complained, he was “reassigned to administrative duties driving a messenger van because he complained of how he was treated,” says court papers.

According to his lawyer Aymen Aboushi, he has been demoted to driving that van for the department (instead of fighting fires) for the last year.

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