A public official from Flint, Mich. has resigned from him position after a recorded conversation where he called African-Americans the n-word leaked to the public.
Michigan Live reports Phil Stair, the sales manager for a county agency that manages tax-foreclosed homes, stepped down from his position Monday (June 5) after he was outset for using the racial slur when he essentially blamed black people for the city’s ongoing water crisis. The conversation was recorded last month by citizen journalist and activist Chelsea Lyons.
Lyons, along with another unidentified woman, met Stair at a Flint bar in May over the course of two days to discuss how his former employer Land Bank were forcing Flint residents out of their homes. It was previously reported that thousands of residents were facing foreclosures because they refused to pay their water bills. The city has argued that resources will be dispersed throughout the city to handle the two-year man made disaster with the help from its residents. While speaking to Stair, Lyons said she was shocked by his comments.
“Detroit was charging all its customers for the cost — they weren’t collecting from their residents, they were shutting water off, they were letting bills go forever, they were charging everybody else,” Stair said at the 1:15 mark. “Flint has the same problems as Detroit — f**king n*****s don’t pay their bills, believe me, I deal with them.”
Lyons posted the recording to Truth Against the Machine, a site dedicated to “exposing the oligarchy.”
He also went on to refer to African-Americans as “derelict mother f***k***” and “fu**king deadbeats” who destroy communities.”They f**k the houses up and then leave, and we tear them down,” he said.
His formal apology arrived with pleas of forgiveness about his “private opinion.””I feel that I cannot carry out nor be effective in my position at the Land Bank with the social media (recording) of my private opinion on the Flint water crisis and the insensitive language used,” the resignation letter reads.”I am deeply sorry for what I said and those I offended. I do not know how I can face my friends and co-workers.”
Michele Wildman, executive director of the Land Bank, shared with NBC News that Stair’s opinion opinions didn’t represent the company. “We are deeply troubled by the offensive and inexcusable comments,” Wildman said. “This individual does not reflect our values as a company, and we are engaging with the community to restore and regain public trust.”