Black firefighter sues Florida over image representing her as White in mural
A former firefighter is suing the US state of Florida over a mural, which depicts her with a White face.
Latosha Clemons, who is Boynton Beach's first Black female firefighter, is seeking more than $100,000 in damages in the lawsuit.
Attorneys are scheduled to meet with commissioners in a closed-door session on Tuesday to pursue the matter over the mural, which was based on an actual photograph of three women.
According to court documents, Boynton Beach officials wanted Clemons depicted as White, "a race the city presumably felt better fit the image it was trying to project.”
The 2019 project by the city's art commission to honor the fire department depicts Clemons as White along with two actually White female firefighters.
Latosha Clemons, the Black Boynton Beach deputy fire-rescue chief, filed a $100,000 lawsuit after being depicted as white in a mural. Read more below. https://t.co/eu0O5LqWQO
— Black News Channel (@BNCNews) October 16, 2021
"I'm hurt. I'm disappointed. I'm outraged," Clemons told the Palm Beach Post in June 2020. "It's been my heart and soul and my lifeblood to serve in the community where I grew up ... this is beyond disrespect and I basically want to know why it happened."
The mural was removed a day after it was unveiled at Fire Rescue Station No. 1 near City Hall on June 3, 2020.
According to the lawsuit, the mural “completely disrespected all that Clemons.... had accomplished," and "also demonstrated disrespect for the large black population.”
The lawsuit also alleges that the mural "subjected her to ridicule, contempt, disgrace and/or humiliation."
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