AUGUSTA — A man who says his employers called him a “Big Indian” has won $40,000 in a lawsuit he filed in Maine.

Jason Brown, of Bangor, says his employers’ comments about “Indians and firewater” reduced his Native American heritage to a joke and a stereotype. Brown is a Penobscot Indian Nation member.

The owners of the Day’s Jewelers in Waterville, Jeff and Kathy Corey, have denied making such statements.

Superior Court Justice Michaela Murphy found last month that Brown was subjected to unwelcome harassment based on his race and awarded the damages.

Murphy’s opinion says it’s “undisputed” that Jeff Corey showed Brown a picture of a man dressed up in Native American clothing doing a “rain dance.”

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