Black 'hero' firefighter saved kids but was demoted after complaining about racist abuse and threats: lawsuit

A black firefighter who has been hailed as a hero for saving the lives of a family has filed a lawsuit saying that he was subjected to racist abuse and threats after he transferred to a busier firehouse, the New York Post reports.

In March, Roben Duge saved a two children from a fire while off-duty.

Despite the heroism, Duge says he has been discriminated against because he is black and is currently driving a truck for the department instead of fighting fires.

Duge became a firefighter in 2013 but ran into problems when he transferred to a firehouse in a far-out Brooklyn neighborhood which was run by Capt. Daniel Florenco.

Florenco allegedly demanded to know why Duge had been allowed to transfer into his firehouse and was told that he should have remained in "the neighborhood you live in."

Florenco allegedly refused to give Duge or another black firefighter the metal plates that identify their firehouse and misrepresented policies to deny him time off.

Duge says he was asked to transfer out of the firehouse and refused, prompting threats from a white firefighter who told him that "if this were back in the day, you would have been punched in the face for refusing to transfer out."