Kean employed aide who was sued over racial slur
2006-10-27
Source: Asbury Park Press
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rss feedU.S. Senate candidate Thomas H. Kean Jr. employed on the state's dime a former state Department of Labor employee who had used the racial slur "wetback" during a meeting in front of several state employees.
Harry Pappas, a political figure from Springfield, Union County, was an aide in Kean's Assembly and Senate offices from 2002 to 2005. In 2001, Pappas, at the time a confidential assistant in the Labor Department, was hit with four discrimination lawsuits by state employees who said he used derogatory terms against Hispanics and women.
Kean said he was unaware of the suits until 2005. "When I found out about the problem with the Labor Department, I fired him," the Republican state senator said.
But Pappas said he kept Kean informed of the suits - filed in 2002 - but was jettisoned as Kean was preparing a U.S. Senate bid last fall.
"Tom Kean came to me and said, "I have to worry about my campaign, and you're a hot commodity,' " Pappas said. ". . . I think he was just looking at survival, and that's the sad thing."
Pappas, who said his wife, stepson, parents and grandparents are all immigrants, said court proceedings have shown he did not use the slurs against minorities.
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