Clifton councilwoman voted off Civil Rights Committee after city worker calls her racist

CLIFTON ‒ When the City Council set up a Civil Rights Committee earlier this month to deal with sensitive racial issues, proponents said for it to be effective, the group must be able to address tough topics and have very difficult conversations.

They didn't foresee having one of those conversations so soon.

On Tuesday, two weeks after the committee was approved, an Aug. 8 letter in which the city's personnel officer, Douglas Johnson, called Councilwoman Mary Sadrakula a racist, was read aloud and added into its record.

After the letter's reading, the Council voted to remove Sadrakula from the committee.

"Councilwoman Mary Sadrakula has attacked me from the day my name was mentioned as a possible appointment," Johnson wrote. "All she knew of me is that I was Black."

Johnson, who in the letter expressed his interest to serve on the committee, said he is well acquainted with racism. While working as personnel director in neighboring Passaic, he said he was passed over to become the city's business administrator.

He sued Passaic and eventually settled for almost $200,000 before beginning to work for Clifton in 2017 via an inter-governmental transfer, bringing along his accrued 680.75 hours of sick time and other perks, including his seniority.

He said he was hired that summer and despite having worked in human resources for 23 years, was attacked by Sadrakula, who at the time was a private citizen.

Sadrakula, in response to the reading of Johnson's letter, said her initial criticism of hiring Johnson was that the city was taking on an unnecessary financial burden because it is now responsible for Johnson's accrued sick time.

Story continues below gallery.

"This is a bad deal for Clifton's taxpayers," Sadrakula said. "He started as if he worked for Clifton for 24 years."

Her behavior continued after she was elected, Johnson wrote. The councilwoman refused to directly send him her personal financial information so she could be paid her Council stipend. Instead, she sent the information via the city manager.

"I guess in her mind she envisions all Black people are criminals and that I would be stealing her Social Security number and banking information," Johnson wrote.

Johnson charged that Sadrakula also harassed him when he moved into the city.

When his neighbor was working in his yard, dust drifted in Johnson's yard and Sadrakula called zoning officials claiming Johnson was doing illegal work in his yard, he wrote.

"Keep in mind she doesn't live anywhere near me," Johnson wrote.

Johnson also wrote that it was Sadrakula last summer who goaded the city manager to paint over a raised fist in a mural meant to celebrate the city's multicultural makeup. It caused a medium-sized firestorm and was the impetus for the civil rights committee.

"The city manager rightfully called her out for the racist that she is," Johnson's letter stated. "This racist cannot be on a civil rights committee," he wrote.

Sadrakula's Council peers voted 6 to 1 with hers the only dissenting vote, to remove her from the council's Civil Rights Committee.

Drone's view of Route 3 workAerial video of ongoing construction at Routes 46 and 3

However, other than voting her off the council's committee and having Johnson's letter read into the record, council members appeared reticent to discuss the issue from the podium. Likewise, during the public comment period, those in attendance did not address or mention Johnson's letter.

The council did approve a measure to modify the committee to include a city employee. Johnson, who is the city's Equal Opportunity Employment Commission officer, will be considered. The Council also agreed to allow a high school student to participate on the committee.

Sadrakula said she found the timing of Johnson's letter "interesting."

It surfaced during an election year and 90 days before Election Day, when voters will decide on who will fill all seven city council seats for the next four years, she said.

Councilmembers appointed Councilman Bill Gibson as Sadrakula's replacement on the committee.

Clifton Mayor James Anzaldi said in more than 30 years as mayor he has never seen anything like this in the city's government.

"I feel really bad about it because (Johnson) never said anything, but I guess he got to the point where he had to say something," Anzaldi said.

Sadrakula's several supporters in the audience said they were not surprised by Tuesday's actions.

They said the council has repeatedly gone after her, publicly censuring her and other times outright ignoring her.

"How many times have they voted 6 to 1 against her?" asked retired city firefighter Henry Cholewcznski.

This article originally appeared on NorthJersey.com: Clifton councilwoman called racist, removed from committee