Boeing South Carolina investigating after an incident on Thursday night, in which, a noose was found hanging in the North Charleston facility where the 787 jetliners are manufactured
The leadership team has addressed the noose as a racially charged symbol and they’ve launched and internal investigation.
The details as to where in the building the noose was found or who was responsible for hanging it have not been confirmed by Boeing. The Associated Press says that an official for the aircraft manufacturer says that it was a foot-long noose that was made from a nylon material.
Brad Zaback, Vice President of the Boeing 787 program, has released a statement on behalf of Boeing South Carolina saying that they have launched a “thorough investigation and will take all appropriate and necessary action”.
Elder James Johnson, State Pesident of National Action Network, a civil rights organization, says that the noose has long been a symbol for racism, and he says this incident sends a racially charged message to all minorities.
He says, “It’s racist. We don’t know the full detail about it, and we don’t know who hung the noose, but it sends a message. And it sends a racially charged message, not only to the person who it was intended for, but also all the minorities that work at Boeing.”
Boeing addressed the racially-charged symbol saying, “there is absolutely no place for racism and these cowardly acts in society and especially in our company.” They say that diversity and inclusion are core to their values.
Elder Johnson says, “Boeing has a great policy of no tolerance of racism. So, I expect that their leadership is going to get to the bottom of it. I understand that they are asking people to come forward and they are doing a full investigation.”
Boeing South Carolina tells us that they have contacted all employees encouraging anyone who has information related to the incident to come forward.
The North Charleston Police Department says that they were not called by Boeing to respond to the incident and they confirm that Boeing is handling the matter internally.
