Des Moines Register: A veteran Iowa employee recently sued Deere & Co., alleging that co-workers and supervisors subjected him to racist jokes and threats for years. Johnnie Ray Hogan III, who has worked at John Deere Des Moines Works in Ankeny since 2010, said many employees called him “the angry black man” and refused to associate with him once he complained about how they treated him, according to a lawsuit filed in Polk County District Court in late June. He also alleged that his managers scrutinized his work more.