Man displaying Confederate flag fired from job site

[Tennis]

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/hamilt...ring-1.4257178

A man who was seen proudly flying a Confederate flag from his truck at a downtown Hamilton construction site has been fired, his employer says.

Keith Lipiec posed for pictures with the flag at a Yoke Group job site at Hamilton's historic Treble Hall at the corner of King and John Streets yesterday.

He refused to give his name to a reporter, but said in an interview that he was flying a flag that is largely condemned as a racist symbol for "sh-ts and giggles," and defended its use. He also got into a shouting match with a citizen, who challenged his use of the flag.


Yoke Group owner and CEO Anthony Quattrociocchi told CBC News Monday evening that Lipiec has been fired.

"I have absolutely zero tolerance for this behaviour. He will no longer be working for Yoke Group," Quattrociocchi said in an email.

'We encourage freedom of speech but not when it evokes any form of hatred or discrimination.'
- Yoke Group statement

Yoke Group also issued a statement on its Facebook page yesterday evening, saying the company believes "strongly in diversity, inclusiveness and acceptance."

"There is zero tolerance for racism and discrimination in our business and on our sites," the statement reads. "We were deeply offended by the actions of the rogue temporary employee at our Treble Hall site today.

"We do not condone or support this individual's actions. We encourage freedom of speech but not when it evokes any form of hatred or discrimination."

Lipiec did not respond to a request for comment Tuesday morning.

In recent years, the Confederate flag has been removed from the South Carolina State House and decried by former U.S. President Barack Obama. Debates have raged for decades over whether it represents southern pride and a state's right to freedom, or whether it is nothing more than a symbol of racism and hatred.

Tensions around Confederate symbols escalated even further this month, after a car sped into a group of several dozen counter-protesters at a white nationalist rally in Charlottesville, Va., killing 32-year-old Heather Heyer and injuring 19 others.

The flag has been adopted by white supremacists, neo-Nazis, avowed fascists and several other ultra right-wing groups.

Hahaha.

What do you expect really? Hopefully he learns his lesson right?

[StayTuned]

Hahaha.

What do you expect really? Hopefully he learns his lesson right?

Yea he'll learn his lesson.

Fucking not. Now he's just an unemployed bigot. So the situation got worse.

[Tierbook]

At least Genn posts links to his articles.....

[Doctor Amadeus]

Hahaha I am totally good with this.

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Yea he'll learn his lesson.

Fucking not. Now he's just an unemployed bigot. So the situation got worse.

Well he already blames blacks, mexicans, and jews for everything not like it can get any worse, good fuck em.

[StayTuned]

Exactly, you don't make people learn their lesson by punishing them for personal beliefs. That has never worked.

It's the corporate SJW knee-jerk reaction. Fire your problems before Twitter burns your company to the ground. Social media is the cancer driving today's issues.

[Tennis]

At least Genn posts links to his articles.....

There is a link at the top. Also you should trust me.

[Daws]

While the business is 100% within their rights. I don't think this is the best way to approach the problem. You are only going to marginalize them further and make them feel more justified in acting out.

Can't say I know American law but are they in there rights? Just wondering if this will get turned around and he can say he broke no laws and was therefore fired without cause and end up cashing a rather large cheque at the end of all this.

[Serpha]

Source? Did you just made that up?

[Mistame]

Also you should trust me.

Stupid leading the blind? That's a new one.

[Gevoth]

We encourage free speech, but...

I'm not a racist, but...

[Ahovv]

I'm of the belief that companies shouldn't get involved in the politics of their employees during their free time.

Now, if this guy was flying the flag while at a work site, they're perfectly fine in asking him to not bring it. But firing without even asking?

Question for anyone who thinks it's a good thing to fire this guy: do you also think it's a good thing for companies to fire their employees who support abortion rights? What if the employee is critical of Christianity on their facebook page?

[baconjesus]

I'm confused, this happened in Canada, is this guy Canadian?

[StayTuned]

Hahaha I am totally good with this.

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Well he already blames blacks, mexicans, and jews for everything not like it can get any worse, good fuck em.

You really can't wrap your head around the problem here? It's fuel for more fire as you just add more problems for him.

You can't fight ideologies like that. It doesn't work and it has never worked before. Fascism wasn't defeated post WW2, Hitler was defeated. You can't destroy an idea with weapons or punishment of those who believe in those ideas. Only an idea can defeat another idea.

[Gevoth]

Only an idea can defeat another idea.

/Cheer @StayTuned

[pathora44]

I'm of the belief that companies shouldn't get involved in the politics of their employees during their free time.

Now, if this guy was flying the flag while at a work site, they're perfectly fine in asking him to not bring it. But firing without even asking?

Question for anyone who thinks it's a good thing to fire this guy: do you also think it's a good thing for companies to fire their employees who support abortion rights? What if the employee is critical of Christianity on their facebook page?

Re-read the article, he was at the construction site with the Confederate Flag on the back of his truck

[s_bushido]

You can't fight ideologies like that.

What ideology? Says in the article that he was flying it for "sh-ts and giggles." So it sounds like a case of "do something stupid, get into a public argument about it, and then get fired."

But if you're talking about other people who display the flag. Well...seems to me like if enough people face a negative reaction for flying their "fuck niggers" flag, they'll keep it to themselves, as whatever tiny fraction of the population that still clings to fascism and Nazism tend to do.

[StayTuned]

What ideology? Says in the article that he was flying it for "sh-ts and giggles." So it sounds like a case of "do something stupid, get into a public argument about it, and then get fired."

Yeeeh shit and giggles. Whatever. There's always some pinch of truth behind some actions and it's not like this is a world first for these kind of things.

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What ideology? Says in the article that he was flying it for "sh-ts and giggles." So it sounds like a case of "do something stupid, get into a public argument about it, and then get fired."

But if you're talking about other people who display the flag. Well...seems to me like if enough people face a negative reaction for flying their "fuck niggers" flag, they'll keep it to themselves, as whatever tiny fraction of the population that still clings to fascism and Nazism tend to do.

Personally I don't want to push people who are potentionally racist bigots into the underground. I like to have them visible, where I can see what they're doing. I want to at least try to influence them, not push them away from a better lifestyle. But maybe I'm crazy

[Spiffums]

'We encourage freedom of speech but not when it evokes any form of hatred or discrimination.'
- Yoke Group statement

Anything that comes before BUT doesn't really count.

[therealstegblob]

While I think there's probably a lot more to the story than that he just came out with a flag and then got fired (for what any of us know, this guy was already a professed fascist or something), I also agree that instantly firing him is something that will only make the problem worse.

Coupled with the fact that there are thousands of people who truly do use the Confederate flag (as stupid as it is to do this, mind you) as a symbol of southern pride/"rebel" pride and in no way correlate it to racism or any views of racism, so you can't just say "OH HE PUT THE FLAG UP... HE'S A RACIST". Again, for what any of us know, this guy was flying the flag in some kind of weird personal protest of people's views that the Confederate flag is innately flown as a symbol of racism by anyone who uses it.

When you drive racists and fascists underground, you drive them to social networks and the internet. That's the real reason the USA is seeing a rising number of open racists and neo-nazis. Ten years ago, 500 closeted white supremacists would be living together in the same city and none of them would ever know the others existed. Now they can all join a Facebook page for their area and boom, suddenly you have fascist pride rallies and shit.

[Harry Botter]

There is a link at the top. Also you should trust me.

I wouldn't trust you to tote a bucket of piss around.