Protesters vow to keep pressing Belleville business to investigate racism allegations
Employees who organized a Black Lives Matter protest against Empire Comfort Systems in Belleville earlier this month plan to do it again Friday and keep doing it until the company admits wrongdoing and apologizes.
“We want them to admit that there is racial discrimination going on at Empire right now and that (the Human Resources department) did not investigate incidents with African Americans and their white co-workers when we were threatened and cussed out and spit on,” said J.D. Dixon, 32, of Belleville, a Black machinist and protest co-organizer.
Dixon, a union member of Boilermakers Local S7, also called on Empire executives to acknowledge that an image in a 2019 safety calendar posted in offices and at the plant was “racist satire,” not the innocent drawing of a child as the company has maintained.
Protesters are asking Empire to implement systemic changes, including formation of a diversity and intervention team of mostly minorities that would help investigate grievances; the hiring of Black people who understand issues of discrimination to serve in upper-level management; and the implementation of a zero-tolerance policy for racist comments or actions.
The company reacted to these requests with a general statement:
“The Empire Comfort Systems management team is taking specific steps to evaluate each employee’s concerns or complaints ... and to resolve all the issues that have been raised,” spokesman Ron O’Connor said. “Because these are internal employee issues, we will not be discussing any details in public.”
On Tuesday, a 14-member Diversity Panel formed by Empire met with representatives of the Belleville Human Relations Commission and Center for Racial Harmony, which are going to help the company evaluate and decide what steps to take moving forward, O’Connor said.
The protest is scheduled for 5 p.m. Friday. Dixon said he was unsure if it would involve a march or just a rally, but predicted that it would attract a larger crowd than before.
On June 19, Empire set up tents to provide shade for protesters and served ice water and snacks in a grassy area across Freeburg Avenue from its main plant, which makes gas fireplaces. That’s not being planned for future rallies, according to O’Connor.
“We don’t anticipate a protest on Empire property, but we certainly would cooperate with any protest that’s on public property,” he said.
Employee files complaints
As Empire protests continue, a white employee who had Confederate flags on his Facebook page is complaining that Dixon and others have been harassing him.
Donald Vannoy, 48, a welder and painter who lives in Belleville, said they posted some of his Facebook images and personal information about him and his family on their Facebook pages, including photos, home addresses, documents related to a bankruptcy filing and records of a criminal conviction from more than 20 years ago.
Vannoy said he complained to the company’s Human Resources department, union leaders and Belleville Police Department and was told that little could be done because Facebook posts are considered protected speech.
Dixon said he shared Vannoy’s Facebook images and information, which were first posted by other Empire employees, because he thought the images were racist. One showed a hand wrapped in a Confederate flag with the middle finger up.
“Why it was detrimental at Empire was that (Vannoy) was a lead man, and he had Black workers under him, so there’s no way that him brandishing and promoting racism on his page was not discriminating,” Dixon said. “... They see this, and they’re like, ‘Dang, I work with him, and he wears this master-race apparel and he’s brandishing a Confederate flag.’ Let’s not be naive. We know what the Confederate flag represents.”
Vannoy said Facebook disabled his page last week, but when it was up, it contained images of Certified Whiteboy clothing and Confederate flags.
Vannoy said he likes the clothing line and he has been displaying the flag since he was a boy who enjoyed watching “The Dukes of Hazzard.” The TV show featured a red Dodge Charger called “The General Lee” with a Confederate flag painted on the roof.
Many people see the Confederate battle flag as racist because its roots are tied to slavery and it’s used by white supremacist groups. Flag supporters say it represents Southern pride and heritage.
Vannoy calls it “part of history.”
“I’m 100% not racist,” he said. “It’s just ridiculous. They don’t know me. I treat everybody the way I want to be treated. I don’t care what color, race or religion you are. ... You treat me with respect, I’ll treat you with respect.”
Vannoy said Empire recently prohibited clothing that displays Confederate flags, including a do-rag that he liked to wear while welding.
Protest drew 40 people
About 40 employees and Black Lives Matters supporters showed up for the first Empire protest on June 19. They held a rally then marched to the Belleville Square and back, waving signs and shouting slogans.
Two company executives, President Nick Bauer, whose family owns the 88-year-old business, and Adam Hickman, vice president of sales and marketing, met with Dixon in advance and agreed to attend the protest to show solidarity for creating an environment of equality and respect for all employees.
The atmosphere became charged when Dixon told Bauer and Hickman in a speech that by marching with protesters they would be acknowledging Empire’s wrongdoing and admitting that the calendar image was racist. Some people in the crowd demanded an apology. The executives declined to take the microphone.
“I’m basically here just to support my employees,” Hickman said before the rally. “That’s my role. I’m here to observe and learn. I’m just going to walk along.”
Roots of the Empire safety calendar go back to 2018, when the company invited children of employees to submit artwork for it. The 2019 calendar included the month of January 2020, which featured the image that became controversial.
The image was patterned off a commercial safety sign. It showed what appears to be a white man with a red ball cap driving a forklift and plowing into a restroom-style stick figure that is shaded black. The message read, “CAUTION” and “WATCH FOR FORKLIFTS.” Bauer stated in a letter to employees earlier this month that it was drawn by a child.
Dixon, who maintains that the artist was an adult, complained about the calendar to the East St. Louis chapter of the NAACP in January.
“(The artist) intentionally made the driver white, and they intentionally made the hat red, and in these times, that’s an indication of a Trump hat,” he said.
Vannoy had a different view on the calendar drawing. He said the message he got was that employees should be careful around forklifts because they can be dangerous.
“I didn’t feel like it was racist,” he said.
This story was originally published July 1, 2020 at 10:50 AM.
