Court officer union boss Dennis Quirk has offended New York’s Italian-American Chief Judge Janet DiFiore with a T-shirt suggesting that she’s a mob boss, The Post has learned.
Quirk ordered the T-shirts, which have Office of Court Administration written over a graphic of the scales of justice unbalanced, above the words “Organized Crime Association.”
DiFiore, who is New York’s first Italian-American chief judge, sent a letter to Quirk Wednesday blasting the T-shirts, which were worn at union rallies pushing for more court officer hires and a hike in pay.
“By insinuating that I, as Chief Judge of the New York State courts, preside over an ‘organized crime association,’ you have publicly attacked the integrity of our entire court family…,” DiFiore wrote in the scathing missive.
She added, “The public display by court personnel, on or off duty of a message that invokes and perpetuates vile and insidious ethnic stereotypes — whether, as here, directed at an Italian-American or at any other group of people who historically have been subjected to such discriminatory tactics — is simply malicious and offensive.”
DiFiore became aware of the T-shirts when she showed up at 60 Centre Street Oct. 23 to receive an award at the Cervantes Society Program in honor of Hispanic Heritage Month.
An inflatable rat balloon and over 75 court officers were gathered at the foot of the courthouse steps, many carrying placards and wearing the inflammatory T-shirts.
The event was organized by Quirk and Pat Cullen, president of the supreme court officers association, who have said that severe staffing shortages are putting court workers in harm’s way.
Quirk, president of New York’s court officers association, told The Post that the number of state court officers has dropped by 33 percent in the past decade.
DiFiore said in the letter that the “public airing of workplace grievances is of course acceptable, permitted and encouraged” but the use of ethnic stereotypes is not.
The judge wants an apology.
“I speak on behalf of the entire Italian-American community, and the thousands of professional and dignified members of our court family, when I call on you to issue a public apology for your degrading and disrespectful conduct,” she wrote.
After Quirk got the letter, he fired off an email to DiFiore calling her allegations outrageous. “This has nothing to do with Italians or Italian Americans and you know it,” he wrote. “You should be ashamed of yourself.”
Cullen called the allegations “patently ridiculous” and said the T-shirt’s message in no way was directed at anyone’s cultural or ethnic background.
John Calvelli, vice chairman of the National Italian American Foundation, wasn’t buying the union boss’s explanation and demanded an apology.
“It’s offensive, it’s inappropriate and in the 21st Century, I’d expect better,” he said, adding that he and several Italian American leaders planned to send a letter to Quirk and Cullen by the end of the week formalizing their demand.
“If you attack one Italian American, you’re really attacking all us,” he said.
New York State Bar Association President Michael Miller said, “We can hardly believe it is necessary to say this, but apparently it is: Ethnic slurs have no place in the public discourse. When the term ‘organized crime’ is used in connection with an Italian-American, the meaning is as obvious as it is offensive.
“Respect and civility are hallmarks of our judicial system — especially when we disagree. We are shocked and disappointed that individuals who play an important role in the operations of our courts would engage in such actions.”