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Councilmember's Spokesman Fired, Rehired, & Fired Six Hours Later
By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 3, 2012
Modified May 3, 2012
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By
Christopher Robbins
Published May 3, 2012
Modified May 3, 2012
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Last week, David Segal was working as City Councilmember Ydanis Rodriguez's spokesman until he was abruptly fired after the New York Post printed a story detailing the federal prison term Segal served when he was 19 years old for throwing a burning rag into an Army recruitment center. At 26, Segal is recently married, working on his masters degree at Brooklyn College, and has been described by many as adept as his job. After a media firestorm, Segal was rehired today by Rodriguez's office, only to be fired again six hours later. "I came in at 9 a.m., the chief of staff gave me my ID back, I ghost-wrote a press release, and at 3 p.m. I got the letter saying I was fired. I'm just really disappointed."
Asked if it was strange interacting with the staff after being rehired, Segal says, "Not really, but I knew that legally, they weren't supposed to fire me." The firing (and now re-firing) may have run afoul of state anti-discrimination laws.
Segal disclosed his arrest and sentencing for the incident when he was hired, and Rodriguez signed off on his empoloyment a year and a half ago. Did Segal think this incident would ever come back to haunt him again? "My main thought is that if you work really hard at a job, you should be judged on the merits of your work. I expected to be judged on the merits of my work."
Could he see it from his bosses' perspective? Presumably, that a councilmember trying to live down a "poking" incident and campaign finance violations can't afford to keep a "terrorist" on staff? "No," Segal says. "The story from the Post ran on a Friday. It didn't really have any legs. If you just let it die, everyone is forced to go back to doing real work on Monday."
He continues, "I really respect Ydanis, especially in light of all the Occupy Wall Street stuff, so it was just really disappointing that he has these deep social justice values but doesn't believe in giving someone a second chance."
Ironically, as Daily News reporter Reuven Blau points out, Rodriguez sponsored a bill in 2010 that would create a program to provide non-violent felony offenders with rehab and job training.
Segal said he would "get into more of the background of this story" on Monday.
Tagged
City Council
david segal
occupy wall street
second chances
ydanis rodriguez
Christopher Robbins
Christopher Robbins is a New York City reporter covering transportation, affordable housing, local politics, and criminal justice. His work has also appeared in New York Magazine, The Village Voice and The New York Times. Chris is a graduate of Patrick Henry High School in Roanoke, Virginia, and enjoys biking to Fort Tilden in the summertime.
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