# Michigan Cop Files Suit Alleging Racism At Work After Test Reveals He Is 18% Black



## Kiowa (May 10, 2017)

*





HASTINGS, Mich. (WWJ)* – A white police officer in west Michigan claims he was a victim of racism after he took a genetic test that revealed he is 18 percent black.

Hastings Police Sergeant Cleon Brown filed a federal civil rights lawsuit against the city of Hastings, saying the racial taunts began last fall after he shared DNA results from Ancestry.com. When he told his boss about it, Brown claims, the police chief called him “Kunte”— the African-American main character from the novel “Roots.”


Brown’s attorney Karie Boylan claims, after that, other officers began walking by Cleon pumping their fists and saying “Black Lives Matter.”

She says things escalated from there.“As soon as my client told the others, the higher-ups in the city, that he was African-American, they thought it was a joke…They treated him as though he was less than them,” Boylan told WWJ’s Beth Fisher. 
“There was an instance where my client was talking to the mayor, and the mayor — upon learning that my client was 18 percent African-American — proceeded to tell him a racist joke using the (N word).”

She said at Christmastime a sergeant put a “black-face Santa” in a stocking on tree in the lobby of the police department, marking it with Brown’s name and “18 percent.” 
After Brown in January filed an EEOC discrimination suit alleging a hostile environment, Boylan says things got worse for him at work.

“He was shut out, he was shunned, the perpetrators of the discrimination started retaliating against him,” she said. “He was told that he could not go to sergeant school, which he had been promised for 18 months, and he was asked by the chief of police to resign his position as sergeant.”
Boylan counters that her client did not make fun of his ancestry; that in fact he felt proud to discover he was part black and was excited to tell his coworkers.
http://detroit.cbslocal.com/2017/05...-at-work-after-test-reveals-he-is-part-black/


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## fluffyforever (May 10, 2017)

And I bet he would have been right in there to join in on the taunting if it was another officer that had those results. 

I can't say I feel bad for him.


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## tru4reele (May 10, 2017)

He done went around telling everbody he black. I can't.


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## Sharpened (May 10, 2017)

tru4reele said:


> He done went around telling everbody he black. I can't.


Are people getting dumber by the second _en masse_? White privilege backfired!


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## Misseyl (May 10, 2017)

He needs to suck it up.  They made the one drop rule so now he's living it.


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## Chocolate_Silk (May 10, 2017)

This is funny because he was probably one of those folk that said racism doesn't exist. Meh, he'll be alright, he can stop telling people.


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## LdyKamz (May 10, 2017)

Me thinks he's another one who doesn't know the meaning of the word racism. First of all why did he go around telling everyone he was black? LOL I get the feeling he was in on the jokes at first but when they wouldn't let up he cried racism. Some of these people provide classic entertainment on a daily. Thanks for this.


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## gingertea (May 10, 2017)

So he has premised a actual civil rights lawsuit off of what? the fact that he shouldn't have to be subjected to being associated with blackness or "black treatment" based on his sliver of ancestral DNA? smh wp get on my nerves... and the sad part is not only will this suit be entertained but he will probably be awarded something..


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## curlicarib (May 10, 2017)

LOL.  I believe him.  I just don't care.


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## curlicarib (May 10, 2017)

Based on the article I don't think it's because he doesn't want to be associated with his blackness, it's because he's being harassed because of his 18%.



gingertea said:


> So he has premised a actual civil rights lawsuit off of what? the fact that he shouldn't have to be subjected to being associated with blackness or "black treatment" based on his sliver of ancestral DNA? smh wp get on my nerves... and the sad part is not only will this suit be entertained but he will probably be awarded something..


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## MizzKutieQ (May 10, 2017)

His mom was dropping hints with that darn name. Cleon Brown.


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## IslandMummy (May 10, 2017)

MizzKutieQ said:


> His mom was dropping hints with that darn name. Cleon Brown.


Exaccccttly


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## 1QTPie (May 10, 2017)

This tickles me.  No one deserves to be harassed.   Good on him for reporting it.  I wonder how the other officers were normally.  I mean, were they saying racist stuff regularly?  

And, great-great-grandma must have been passing because 18% is a lot for a white American.


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## Chocolate_Silk (May 10, 2017)

1QTPie said:


> This tickles me.  No one deserves to be harassed.   Good on him for reporting it.  *I wonder how the other officers were normally. * *I mean, were they saying racist stuff regularly? *
> 
> And, great-great-grandma must have been passing because 18% is a lot for a white American.



I'm sure they were and he was chiming right in... It's just no fun when the jokes on you.


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## ArrrBeee (May 10, 2017)

MizzKutieQ said:


> His mom was dropping hints with that darn name. Cleon Brown.


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## PJaye (May 10, 2017)

Kiowa said:


> *Boylan counters that her client did not make fun of his ancestry; that in fact he felt proud to discover he was part black and was excited to tell his coworkers.*



Yeah, right.


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## FlowerHair (May 10, 2017)

He probably never expected that. Now he knows.


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## Transformer (May 10, 2017)

Look at the nose.


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## brg240 (May 10, 2017)

PJaye said:


> Yeah, right.


I know a girl that was so proud of being, I think, 1/8th black. Its like 6 years later and I heard her call herself white passing mixed.


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## LdyKamz (May 10, 2017)

brg240 said:


> I know a girl that was so proud of being, I think, 1/8th black. Its like 6 years later and I heard her call herself white passing mixed.


Smh You can't make this stuff up can you?


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## TLC1020 (May 10, 2017)

Wow, I say that because the officers feel comfortable saying that to him and their behavior is bad as well so I wonder how they treat the black citizens they are sworn to protect. I wonder if he ever asked his parents where they got his name from, and I wonder if he plan on tracing to see where and who the 18% black ancestor was.


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## Femmefatal1981 (May 10, 2017)

curlicarib said:


> LOL.  I believe him.  I just don't care.


This...

I'm sure they treated him like he was 50-70% after he told them. Oh well.


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## Layluh (May 10, 2017)

This is hilarious to me. I dont even know why


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## VeryBecoming (May 10, 2017)

Layluh said:


> This is hilarious to me. I dont even know why



I am literally crying laughing  It's like a Chapelle Show skit IRL!


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## cocosweet (May 10, 2017)

Everyone has the right to a non-hostile work environment. At the same time, I have to ask what did he think was going happen? Did he forget the world he lives in?


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## Layluh (May 10, 2017)

VeryBecoming said:


> I am literally crying laughing  It's like a Chapelle Show skit IRL!


Thats exactly what I thought but was too lazy to go back and add that.


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## LivingInPeace (May 10, 2017)

cocosweet said:


> Everyone has the right to a non-hostile work environment. At the same time, I have to ask what did he think was going happen? Did he forget the world he lives in?


You know they don't think anything applies to them.


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## ejfel (May 10, 2017)

cocosweet said:


> Everyone has the right to a non-hostile work environment. At the same time, I have to ask what did he think was going happen? Did he forget the world he lives in?


Well given that he grew up white,  I couldn't possible expected him to know our world. He thought he would be exempted and embraced because of that fact. He thought wrong.


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## SlimPickinz (May 10, 2017)

So I must ask is he mixed??


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## Brwnbeauti (May 10, 2017)

Sharpened said:


> Are people getting dumber by the second _en masse_? White privilege backfired!


He didn't believe the myth of racism.


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## cocosweet (May 10, 2017)

ejfel said:


> Well given that he grew up white,  I couldn't possible expected him to know our world. He thought he would be exempted and embraced because of that fact. He thought wrong.


Expectation:
"Yo bro, you're part black?" "That's totally awesome!" "Does this mean you're woke now?" "You get to be exotic, how cool."

Reality:  "S'up Kunta." "It's Cleon." "That's what I said." "Stop being so sensitive."


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## BEAUTYU2U (May 10, 2017)

cocosweet said:


> Expectation:
> "Yo bro, you're part black?" "That's totally awesome!" "Does this mean you're woke now?" "You get to be exotic, how cool."
> 
> Reality:  "S'up Kunta." "It's Cleon." "That's what I said." "Stop being so sensitive."



OMG ... tears!


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## LdyKamz (May 10, 2017)

Nobody else thinks he was walking around saying the n word and saying things like "you ain't heard, I'm black I can say it" Lol I don't know why that's the feeling I'm getting. And when his boys was still calling him Tyrone and doing the black power fist a month later he got butthurt and wanted to cry to somebody about it hence the lawsuit.


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## BEAUTYU2U (May 10, 2017)

MizzKutieQ said:


> His mom was dropping hints with that darn name. Cleon Brown.



I'm STILL laughing about the name. Did their ancestor teach them nothing about passing? No one ever read "Our Kind of People?" Nothing?


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## Autumn~Tint~Of~Gold (May 10, 2017)

so now when I think a white person looks weirdly black I'll know maybe they actually  are lol.


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## Autumn~Tint~Of~Gold (May 10, 2017)

MizzKutieQ said:


> His mom was dropping hints with that darn name. Cleon Brown.


 Cleon?????? 
That does definitely sound like a black man's name.


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## NijaG (May 10, 2017)

Autumn~Tint~Of~Gold said:


> so now when I think a white person looks weirdly black I'll know maybe they actually  are lol.



No they are not. They just have some African/black DNA


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## Autumn~Tint~Of~Gold (May 10, 2017)

NijaG said:


> No they are not. They just have some African/black DNA


that's what I meant  . I don't observe the 1 drop rule.


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## MilkChocolateOne (May 10, 2017)




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## SpiritJunkie (May 10, 2017)

Ha-lar-rious!!  18% dude....yous black...


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## discodumpling (May 10, 2017)

Look how quickly he lost his y/t privilege with just 18% of Africa flowing through his weak veins....and how quickly he cried "uncle" & pulled the proverbial race card. 

I would like him to win his law-suit. This will certainly set precedent. It would have to work both ways of course and Black folks with 18% Euro will get the benefit. Whatever that is...


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## frida1980 (May 10, 2017)

1QTPie said:


> This tickles me.  No one deserves to be harassed.   Good on him for reporting it.  I wonder how the other officers were normally.  I mean, were they saying racist stuff regularly?
> 
> And, great-great-grandma must have been passing because 18% is a lot for a white American.



More like a parent or a few grand parents. According to the math, he had 1 full black great grandparent. Which means nothing since we all have white ancestry. My guess, light skinned black grand parent+white grandparent, parent passed and he's the result.


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## HaveSomeWine (May 10, 2017)

I wonder why he started claiming it- for a joke, cool points, scholarships, or what? Was he being serious or doing it to mock only to have the tables turned on him? 

I know my probably 20% Black stepsister and her 10% Black kids will all of a sudden go from Hispanic to African American on identification forms now that she wants to go back to school. She and my stepmother were joking about claiming AA on forms for scholarships during their younger years. I know my stepmother's mother and grandparents growing up had them do this even though they despised African Americans and wouldn't associate with them. They were looking to get free money/benefits/affirmative action. 

Hilarious since 8/10 people in their family are too brain dead to ever actually do anything productive with a higher education in the first place. I remember being flabbergasted when I was informed she was trying to go back to school. I mean the girl barely graduated high school and her bro not even middle school.


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## Sharpened (Sep 24, 2018)

He only got 65K because he mocked himself to coworkers.
https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/01/us/police-lawsuit-african-ancestry-settlement-trnd/index.html


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## DST1913 (Sep 24, 2018)

After you get your results can you gain priviledges? Cuz like I said before my darksinned 4C hair having self tested with over 30% European. I'm owed some thangs. Where do I collect?


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## LdyKamz (Sep 24, 2018)

Sharpened said:


> He only got 65K because he mocked himself to coworkers.
> https://www.cnn.com/2018/08/01/us/police-lawsuit-african-ancestry-settlement-trnd/index.html


Called it! See my earlier post. Homeboy definitely brought this on himself.


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## LivingInPeace (Sep 24, 2018)

His name is Cleon Brown and he *didn’t *know he had some black in him?


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## Sheriberi (Sep 24, 2018)

Kiowa said:


> When he told his boss about it, Brown claims, the police chief called him “Kunte”— the African-American main character from the novel “Roots.”








 Police Chief Caruso?


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## intellectualuva (Sep 24, 2018)

curlicarib said:


> LOL.  I believe him.  I just don't care.



Nope. Not one bit. @ being called Kunte....boy white people just cant help themselves.


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## Farida (Sep 28, 2018)

Thanks y’all. This thread killed me.


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