The former assistant director of the Augusta Parks and Recreation Department, Tim Fulton, recently agreed to accept a $30,000 settlement from the city after filing a racial discrimination lawsuit against his former employers.
In filing the lawsuit, Fulton bravely yanked the curtains open and exposed the rampant racism of the department’s director, Maurice McDowell.
The Augusta Commission has long known that McDowell systematically either fired or forced resignations and retirements on virtually the entire senior staff throughout the department.
The closest statement from an Augusta commissioner acknowledging McDowell’s purges came from Commissioner Brandon Garrett, who said that, “He’s gotten rid of or forced out most of the staff with institutional knowledge and abilities to run these programs.”
What Garrett did not have the intestinal fortitude to admit was that the purge was directed at only White people in the department.
It appears McDowell wanted a staff composed of only Black employees. Experience and expertise did not matter as long as the applicant had McDowell’s preferred skin tone.
In the past two and a half years, many of those purged came forward to complain about their treatment; however, due to fears of reprisals, no one prior to Fulton would air their claims publicly.
Prior to McDowell’s tenure, Parks and Recreation ran like a well-oiled machine. Employees took pride in their work maintaining the Garden City and their attention to detail could be seen all over the county.
Now, virtually every park, community center and city cemetery show signs of intentional neglect. The city has even paid $7 million to Infrastructure Systems Management, LLC to tell McDowell how to do his job, but he apparently doesn’t listen to any of the advice he is being given.
Riverwalk remains a dump, despite the city pumping in American Recovery Act funding, the comfort stations at Diamond Lakes still do not work properly, the Boathouse at the Marina is to be demolished and the grass still does not get cut at parks and cemeteries.
While the city was not forced to issue an apology, it was forced to admit that Fulton was discriminated against on racial grounds.
It is now time for the public to ask the Augusta Commission, most of which have long known of McDowell’s character, “At long last, have you left no sense of decency?”
Turning a blind eye to unethical behavior is akin to abetting a crime.
It is time for the commission to do the right and proper thing. They must send McDowell to the unemployment line without his golden parachute.
