Fireman suspended for 2nd day for flag sticker

A Chester City firefighter suspended over an American flag sticker on his locker has been suspended for another day.

Krapf, 31, an 11-year veteran of the department, was suspended without pay Thursday after he disobeyed an order to clear decorations from the outside of his locker.

Fire Commissioner James Johnson tonight refused to grant Krapf a reprieve. The union said it planned to discuss the matter with the commissioner on Monday.

The clash over the flag started as an attempt to squash arguments in the firehouse. Johnson directed all 61 firefighters to clear the outside of the lockers this summer after a black firefighter posted a cartoon that some found offensive.

The firefighter, Robert Butler, said today that he posted the cartoon, which showed two black men and included language that could be considered racial slurs, as a protest. Butler, 48, who is black, said he feels that some white firefighters have tried to get him in trouble during his 15 years with the department.

Johnson, who is also black, removed the cartoon after another firefighter complained. Butler then posted a sign that read, "Black man has no free speech." Butler was suspended for a day when he refused to remove the sign. He took it down the following day.

The directive, which ordered firefighters to keep the outside of lockers "free of alteration," was announced Aug. 14 and went into effect Aug. 29. Firefighters can keep family photos and other personal items inside the lockers.