Posted on 11/29/2006 4:21:00 PM PST by wagglebee
MINNEAPOLIS, Minnesota, November 29, 2006 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Minneapolis city council voted to fire lesbian fire chief Bonnie Bleskachek Tuesday, after four separate sexual discrimination and harassment lawsuits were filed against Minneapolis’ first female fire chief.
City council rejected tentative plans to demote Bleskachek to battalion chief or captain, after a closed meeting with Mayor R.T. Rybak and executive committee members.
Bleskacheck had earlier agreed to step down from her position as fire chief and anticipated a deal granting her a lesser position, the Guardian Unlimited reported earlier today.
“She was pretty stunned because it was a complete surprise,” her attorney Jerry Burg told the Associated Press. It is unclear if Bleskacheck will be retained by the department in any capacity.
A city investigation found Bleskachek manipulated promotions in the department to favour lesbians and friends, after two lawsuits claimed the fire chief acted maliciously in denying promotions to two female firefighters.
The city settled out of court last month on both suits, agreeing to pay a total of $94,000 to fire Captain Jennifer Cornell and firefighter Kathleen Mullen. The investigation, legal settlements and paid leave for Bleskachek have cost the city more than $410,000.
Cornell, who had been in a relationship with Bleskachek, said the fire chief canceled the final exam for battalion chief after Cornell was found to be one of two female finalists for the position. Cornell’s attorney said Bleskachek had acted out of malice because the relationship between the two women had ended. Cornell will receive $65,000 in damages from the city and will be promoted within the next two years.
Kathleen Mullen also filed suit against Bleskachek on grounds of discrimination, claiming Bleskachek threw out her test scores in the exam process for battalion chief in a further act of malice against Cornell. Mullen will receive $29,000 and promotion to battalion chief.
A third suit still underway accuses Bleskachek of sexual harassment for denying firefighter Kristina Lemon training and advancement opportunities after Lemon rejected sexual advances from Bleskachek.
A fourth suit was filed this month by a male firefighter, Elondo Wright, who claims the fire chief harassed him, gave him unjustly poor performance reviews and denied him advancement opportunities within the department.
In related news, a former Los Angeles police officer has filed a lawsuit claiming she was harassed and discriminated against by fellow officers at the LAPD Pacific Division because she was not homosexual.
Cindy S. Perez alleges she was dismissed from the force on false charges in 2005, after she was accused of pointing her gun at an officer during a training exercise in 2003. Her accusers were a lesbian lieutenant and a male sergeant, Perez claims in documents obtained by KCAL Television.
The lawsuit says heterosexual female officers at the LAPD’s Pacific Division were targeted for harassment and denied advancement opportunities granted to lesbians, in an environment Perez described as “lesbian-friendly.”
Perez claims she was singled out for intimidation and harassment after she filed a misconduct complaint against a lesbian sergeant--her suit alleges the sergeant had a history of sexual discrimination complaints against her.
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No pics for the guys, wagglebee? You know they want 'em! :P
What? Women don't commit sexual harrassment. Neither do homosexuals. The courts tell us so.
This is blantant homophobia...
(/sarcasm)
Not any surprise here. Only thing that surprises me is that it is reported at all.
It's all good!
Why did one get 65K and the other only 29?
The lesbian fire chief needs to learn to be tolerant of others, doesn't she?
This article says she was stunned at the developments of her firing. So there is an attempt to make her the victim.
Favoritism and other unprofessional behavior is not excused just because one is a member of a politically correct high status group such as homosexuals.
Does anyone else remember how tough Jackie Robinson had it as the first black player in the major leagues? And he knew that his attitudes and behaviors would affect people's opinions of him and black players in general. Does any aggrieved minority today feel that way? Does this lesbian fire chief care that she has set back homosexual rights causes by her actions?
Same thread was posted yesterday. She looks like Clay Aiken, KD Lang, and Alfred E. Newman had a love child.
What a tangled freaking mess.
Gee, aren't we glad that government saw fit to get involved in workplace discrimination back in the 80's? Things sure have gotten better.
Sure. She threw up everytime she saw a hose.
SURPRISE!!! You are not longer chief!!!! Party time!
Wow, have you seen a pix of this "hot babe"?
Geez, she looks more like a man than I do.
She and K. D. Lang should get married, they look so alike.
Pardon my homophobia, but I despise lesbians.
There are some on the thread now!
Minneapolis Fire Chief Bonnie Bleskachek. (MPR Photo/Brandt Williams)
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