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Former NY Post Editor Sues Over Firing, Harassment
By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 10, 2009
Modified Nov 10, 2009
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By
John Del Signore
Published Nov 10, 2009
Modified Nov 10, 2009
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The NY Post editor who was fired after complaining about a controversial political cartoon depicting the author of Obama's stimulus package as a dead chimpanzee has filed a major lawsuit against the tabloid, News Corp, and Post editor in chief Col Allan. It's a doozy! In the 38 page complaint, Sandra Guzman accuses her former employer of ignoring racist and sexual harassment, and depicts the Post newsroom as a male-dominated frat house run by the crude, misogynistic Allan. Hardly surprising, but her accusations are juicy nonetheless:
- The Post's D.C. bureau chief stated that the publication's goal was to "destroy [President] Barack Obama."
- "On one occasion when Ms. Guzman and three female employees of the Post were sharing drinks at an after-work function. Allan approached the group of women, pulled out his blackberry and asked them 'What do you think of this?' On his blackberry was a picture of a naked man lewdly and openly displaying his penis. When Ms. Guzman and the other female employees expressed their shock and disgust at being made to view the picture, Allan just smirked."
- "A White male senior editor sexually propositioned a young female Copy Assistant, telling her that 'If you give me a blowjob, I will give you a permanent reporter job.'"
- "On another occasion... Allan approached a female employee during a party at the Post, rubbed his penis up against her and made sexually suggestive comments about her body, including her breasts, causing that female employee to feel extremely uncomfortable and fearing to be alone with him."
Oh, and when Guzman would walk by certain offices at the paper, editors would allegedly sing songs from West Side Story such as "I want to live in America," which Guzman interpreted as mocking her Latino heritage. She also claims the Post had planned to run a cartoon in the newspaper depicting Jews as sewer rats.
The lawsuit, which the Huffington Post has obtained in full, accuses the Post of firing her as retaliation for speaking out about the dead chimp cartoon. A spokesman for the tabloid says, "Sandra's position was eliminated when the monthly in-paper insert, Tempo, of which she was editor, was discontinued, reflecting the dramatic decline in ad sales across our industry."
Tagged
cartoon
col allan
dead chimp
editorial
lawsuit
ny post
sandra guzman
sexual harassment
John Del Signore
Originally from the Albany area, John Del Signore has called NYC home since 1995. In addition to his thousands of meticulously-crafted bespoke blog posts for Gothamist, his writing has also been published in The Awl, Deadspin, The Nervous Breakdown, and performed at The Brick Theater in Brooklyn.
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Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
Gothamist is funded by sponsors and member donations
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