Marlon Anderson: Cher offers to cover legal fees for security guard who was fired for repeating a racial slur – CBS News, CBS News
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A Wisconsinsecurity guard was firedearlier this week for telling a student not to use a racial slur. Now, Cher is offering to pay for any lawsuit he may file.
Marlon Anderson, a 48 – year-old black security guard at a Wisconsin high school, was fired for repeating the N-word. He said he used it in order to tell a student not to say it. The student, who is also black, called Anderson the slur along with a number of other expletives.
“I made a conscious decision to address the word because it is an epidemic,” Anderson told CBS News affiliate WISC. “Our kids use it every day.”
He also questioned how he could be fired for standing up for himself.
“I just don ‘ t understand getting fired for trying to defend yourself, “said Anderson, who worked for the district for 11 years. “As a black man, I have a right not to be called that word.”
Anderson said he had been called the slur by students before, and typically uses those conversations as teachable moments to explain the history, context and meaning of the slur, WISC reported. He and the Anderson and the Madison teachers’ union filed a grievance seeking his job back.
On Friday, legendary singer Cheroffered to pay for any legal feesAnderson may incur if he wants to sue. She said she was shocked by the disrespect, especially following the death of Rep. Elijah Cummings.
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