The Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce is calling for the resignation of Michigan Senate staffer LaMar Lemmons in the wake of a recent Facebook post taking aim at the Chaldean business community.

Lemmons, a former member of the state House of Representatives from 1999 to 2006 and former president of the Detroit Public Schools board from 2012 to 2016, currently serves as chief of staff for state Sen. Betty Jean Alexander, D-Detroit.

In a Facebook post Saturday, Lemmons said, "Our Chaldean brothers used Black Bridge card money to establish banks! Bridge cards, as you know, are redeemed for cash; right?"

He went on to say, "They have established a multi-billion dollars empire from mostly Black dollars in the Black community. They used the capital acquired from the Black community to finance the purchase and operation of Dollar stores, Used Car lots, loan and finance companies, Payday lending businesses, Check cashing, Grocery stores, Party stores, Tax preparation (tax return loans), restaurants, Bars, liquor stores, Oil change and auto repair shops, and they are now becoming major players in the legal cannabis industry even as many where engaged in the illegal drug industry prior to legalization; right?"

The post elicited a barrage of anonymous calls to Alexander's offices Monday morning, according to an early afternoon Facebook post from Lemmons that day.

It also provoked veiled written threats to Lemmons and direct threats to Alexander, he said, prompting him to remove the post.

"My opinions and posts on my Facebook page are my own and not to be conflated or confused with the position of the senator," Lemmons told Crain's Wednesday.

"I'm merely exercising my First Amendment right on my own time."

Late Monday afternoon, two days after the initial post, Lemmons posted an apology on Facebook, prompted by Chaldean friends who were offended and thought his comments racist. He disagreed, but agreed the post did overgeneralize, he said.

"I have been made aware that not every Chaldean is merchant. Thus, my post over generalized an entire group of people. Some Chaldeans have never run a business, others have only run businesses in which there is equal trade in purchases of goods and services between that community where they live, buy and sell EQUALLY from one another," he said.

"... Therefore, to all the Chaldeans that were offended by my post because (it) overbroadly implicated them, I sincerely apologize. Additionally, I will not mention you as a group on social media again. In accordance with this good faith apology and agreement, the Chaldean community agrees to hereby stop trolling me and inundating our office with anonymous calls. Deal?"

Lemmons said on Wednesday that his original post was "a knee-jerk response which led to an overgeneralization on my part, which is why I apologized."

Someone calling themselves the Chaldean King made an offensive comment on a thread where Lemmons was advocating that black people should pool their dollars to build business and recycle dollars in its community to employ others in the black community, Lemmons said.

Still, Lemmons said he hasn't been contacted directly by the Chaldean American Chamber of Commerce.

"If they had a problem with that (post) or something was offensive, I am open ... to discussion and clarification," he said.

In response to the chamber's call for his resignation, Lemmons said, "How dare any outside entity, nonresidential entity, come in to the office of an African American elected official to request that they violate the (First Amendment) rights of another African American?"

Calling for his resignation would be premature, he said. "I posted an apology to the overgeneralization. I await their contact."

Lemmons' comments were "insensitive, hurtful and wrong," the chamber said in a statement emailed to Crain's.

"It is disappointing and egregious when an individual who represents state government makes such remarks, even more so when a member of a minority community disparages those of another."

The Chaldean and African American communities have a long history of friendship, partnership and overcoming adversity, the chamber said in the statement.

"We value those relationships and commonalities implicitly. No one benefits from divisive rhetoric. It is time for all of us to stand together — with cooler heads yet resolve — and demand better."

The Farmington Hills-based chamber's president, Martin Manna, on Wednesday said that Lemmons has made similar comments in the past. And those comments shouldn't be tolerated, given that he's a state employee.

"People working for state government, getting paid by taxpayers have a higher standard," Manna said.

"Frankly, whether or not he says it is his own views ... it is a reflection of the office he works for."

Manna said he spoke with Senate Minority Leader Jim Ananich, D-Flint, over the weekend on the matter, who signaled his intent to take it up with Alexander.

Alexander did not immediately respond to requests for comment Wednesday.

"It's clear that Mr. Lemmons needs some cultural competency training," Manna said.

"I wouldn't tolerate this from staff. Certainly, the state senate shouldn't either."

A group of activists for the Chaldean Community are planning a Lansing rally on the issue Monday if Lemmons hasn't resigned by then, Manna said.