A Philadelphia Family Court employee and documented racist has been fired after being seen in widely shared footage tearing down Black Lives Matter signs and attempting to disparage the inherent message of the movement.
Michael Henkel has been fired due to his behavior having violated "multiple" rules found in the Unified Judicial System Code of Conduct and the Non-Discrimination and Equal Employment Policy, according to a report from a regional Philadelphia NBC News outlet.
In a statement, a court spokesperson confirmed the firing of Henkel, who had worked as a supervisor writ server.
"The Court takes this incident very seriously and believes Mr. Henkel's behavior as shown in the video is egregious and totally unacceptable for an employee of the Courts," the spokesperson said.
In the footage, first shared to Facebook, Henkel is seen ripping Black Lives Matter signs off a fence. When someone off-camera tells him that's not his property, he begins the usual diatribe uttered by this sort of person in this sort of incident.
"It's the city," he says. "I pay for this. My taxes pay for this place, just so you know. So I can do whatever I want. You're fucking right I can." When someone nearby says "Black lives matter," Henkel reveals to the whole world that he thinks they do not.
"Not to me, they don't … You can go fuck yourselves," he says.
To the knowledge of this writer, Henkel has not publicly addressed the footage and/or the subsequent firing. But who gives a shit what else he has to say anyway?
