A Black couple in Florida found a lynched “slave” doll and a racist warning at their shared workplace.
The “slave” doll with a racist slur painted on the clothes was left in the work truck of Steven Parks in Groveland. It prompted a hate crime investigation by the Groveland Police Department.
Parks said he discovered the doll last Friday when he stepped into his truck.
“Somebody hanged a ‘slave’ doll and they wrote on it, ‘You 2 (expletive) go back to Philly,'” he said. “The only two people who work here that are from Philadelphia are me and my wife.”
Parks and his wife, who work for Waste Pro, have been the targets of harassment at the company. When they initially reported the incident to the human resources department, the company, which has a predominantly white executive leadership team, didn’t immediately take action.
Upon reporting the incident to WKMG, a representative from Waste Pro claimed they called the Groveland Police Department “immediately upon learning of the incident and that the company is conducting an internal investigation.”
“While we cannot comment on the specifics of these investigations, any type of discrimination or hate crime is abhorrent in the culture of our company, in which more than 60 percent of our 3,500-member workforce are minorities,” said Ron Pecora, senior vice president at Waste Pro.
Groveland City Manager Mike Hein did confirm that was there was an active investigation to the news station and even said it was being viewed as a potential “hate crime.”
“The City of Groveland is confident our police department is investigating these allegations thoroughly. The City of Groveland is committed to providing a safe, diverse community where all citizens are treated with respect, and we are putting our full resources toward this investigation,” he said. “Hate crimes, hate speech and acts of bias will not be tolerated.”
