Trendpills
A Black firefighter, Jeron G. Rogers, has filed a $25 million federal civil rights lawsuit against the Township of Bloomfield, New Jersey, its fire department, and several individual officials. The suit alleges a severe and pervasive hostile work environment, racial discrimination, and retaliation stemming from the discovery of multiple nooses.
The complaint, filed in the U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey, details at least two distinct events. The first incident occurred in September 2023, when a noose was allegedly placed on Rogers's firefighting equipment. According to the lawsuit, a second noose appeared in the firehouse kitchen in February 2025, suggesting a continued pattern of targeted harassment. Rogers contends that after reporting the initial discovery, he faced retaliatory actions from colleagues and superiors instead of receiving adequate protection.
The 2023 event had already resulted in significant legal action, with criminal hate crime charges filed against another Bloomfield firefighter involved in that incident. However, Rogers's lawsuit argues that the township's response was insufficient to curb the racist culture within the department, ultimately failing to prevent further harassment. This case is not an isolated event in the state, as it follows other firefighters filing claims over race discrimination and retaliation in New Jersey departments.
The lawsuit cites violations of the First and Fourteenth Amendments, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and the New Jersey Law Against Discrimination. It accuses the defendants of failing to properly investigate the incidents and protect the plaintiff. The core of the legal action revolves around allegations of systemic and ongoing race discrimination that the department's leadership allegedly ignored or failed to remedy. The Township of Bloomfield has not yet issued a public comment on the pending litigation. The suit seeks both compensatory and punitive damages, in addition to calling for institutional reforms to address the alleged deep-seated racism.
