A Rochester Couple Denied Allegations of Racism. Then Came a Confession

Mary Znidarsic-Nicosia and her husband, Nicholas Nicosia, wanted to clear their names after being accused of throwing a racist party. So, they made a plan and held a press conference this week.

Step one: The wealthy, white couple from Rochester, N.Y., adamantly defended themselves against what Znidarsic-Nicosia called “false claims of racism.”

Step two: Znidarsic-Nicosia confessed to a room full of reporters that she also happens to run a racist, anonymous Twitter account.

“In full disclosure, I do have a Twitter parody account that operates under a veil of a persona — and I have made blatantly racist comments under that persona,” she admitted.

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The couple came under fire after being named in a notice to sue filed by Jerrod Jones, a Rochester firefighter, against the city and the fire department. Jones, who is Black, said his former captain, Jeffrey Krywy, ordered him and other firefighters to attend the party thrown by the Nicosias on July 7, while they were all on duty.

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When the group arrived at the party, the filing states, “Jones felt immediately uneasy, and his uneasiness intensified as he walked up the driveway and noticed a large cut out of former President Donald Trump. {snip}

The large backyard was decorated with Juneteenth flags and cups that were placed near buckets of KFC and bottles of Hennessy cognac, according to the document.

The Nicosias’ lawyer, Corey Hogan, told NPR that theme of the party was anti-liberal – the invitation called it the “1st annual Liberal Smashin Splish Splash Pool Party.”” – but that it was being misconstrued by Jones as racist.

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While the real estate agent did not disclose her anonymous Twitter handle, the now-defunct @HoHoHomeboyROC account used the image of a bust of a Black mammy that she admitted she owns. Screengrabs of previous posts include other anti-Black imagery, reposts of other accounts trolling Black people – often in an offensive interpretation of Black vernacular – and several fake ads for KFC.

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