VOICE IN THE WILDERNESS: A PORTENT OF THINGS TO COME

Minister Cornell Lewis has spent many years fighting for justice for all oppressed people. Most recently, he has been facing a battle that is both political and personal. He has been fighting with his (former) employer, the Department of Children and Families (DCF),  regarding treatment of Black and Latino employees. He has planned protests in front of DCF offices, he has urged residents of Hartford’s North End  to learn their rights and deny DCF workers admittance to their homes without just cause. He has written articles and letters regarding the treatment of Black and Latino employees and the lack of representation in the managerial ranks. He has also filed a suit against DCF, along with some of his co-workers from the Connecticut Juvenile Training School (CJTS), due to the disparate treatment of Black and Latino males.

As a result of his fight for justice within DCF, Minister Cornell Lewis has lost his job. DCF fired him over and incident they CLAIMED put children in danger. In reality, he was fired because he was considered a rabble rouser. In fact, DCF used various methods to try to get him to resign. But that is not the type of person Minister Cornell Lewis has ever been  or will ever be. Although he is no longer employed by DCF, he vows to continue to fight for fair treatment for Black and Latino employees.

It is unprecedented for a state employee to be dismissed unless there is proof of gross incompetence. That is not evident in this case. Minister Lewis has been a positive influence in the lives of the children he has been working with, and should be seen as an asset to DCF and CJTS. Instead, he has been targeting unjustly simply for fighting for his rights and for the rights of other people of color in the employ of DCF.

DCF involved two fellow employees of CJTS in their disciplinary action against Minister Lewis. Although they have not been terminated, and probably will not be, this was a transparent ploy of the part of the CJTS administration to cause friction between Cornell Lewis and his co-workers. Minister Cornell Lewis has refused to allow this sort of injustice to continue simply for fear of “making waves”. He may be despised, dismissed and turned against by former allies, but he WILL continue to fight.

Joanna Iovino, Editor, the Hart Monitor