Black fireman finds noose after bias claim

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NEW YORK, Feb. 7 (UPI) -- A black New York firefighter who filed a bias complaint found a noose hanging on his locker, his lawyer says.

Gregory Seabrook, a fire department electrician for almost two decades, found the 3-foot noose Thursday at the facility where he works in Brooklyn, the lawyer, Stephen Jackson, told the New York Daily News.

"There's an ominous message behind it," Jackson said. "That was a type of weapon used as a flogging knot to beat slaves. It's very thick and very hard and it's designed to cause injuries."

Jackson said he would show the rope at a news conference Monday.

Seabrook and four other minority electricians filed complaints with the New York State Division of Human Rights, saying they were passed over for overtime and promotions. Seabrook filed in December, following the other four, who did so in October, their lawyers said.

A department spokesman told the Daily News he had no knowledge of the case and Seabrook declined to comment Sunday night.