City of Kansas City worker says she was targeted after viral Harrison Butker Tweet
KANSAS CITY, Mo. — Andrea Watts, a Black woman employed as a senior administrative assistant and social media specialist with the City of Kansas City, is suing the city under the Missouri Human Rights Act (MHRA) and Missouri's whistleblower statute.
Watts claims she was subjected to ongoing discrimination based on race, sex and disability. She claims she experienced a hostile work environment and retaliation and was wrongly blamed for a controversial tweet made from the city's official account referencing Chiefs kicker Harrison Butker and his residence.
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Butker delivered a commencement speech at Benedictine College on May 11, 2024, which sparked significant controversy after he promoted traditional gender roles and conservative Catholic views.
On May 15, 2024, the official City of Kansas City X account posted: 'Just a reminder that Harrison Butker lives in the City of Lee's Summit'
After the tweet about Butker went viral, the lawsuit claims Watts was falsely accused online of posting it.
According to the lawsuit, she became the target of racist, sexist and violent threats, including death threats and doxxing. Despite internal knowledge that Watts did not post the tweet, the city failed to publicly clear her name, the lawsuit claims.
Her LinkedIn profile, personal address and pictures were circulated online, and someone even uploaded a picture of a Black woman who had been lynched outside of her previous home, along with her name.
According to the lawsuit, Watts reported that she was being discriminated against and harassed through her employment, which is a violation of the law (the MHRA and the city's policy against discrimination and harassment).
The lawsuit says that by the time Watts met with supervisors, dozens of news organizations had written stories about the tweet.
Watts repeatedly asked the city to issue a public statement clearing her name. Watts said, despite knowing she wasn't responsible for the tweet, the city never publicly identified her as innocent.
The mayor, city manager and assistant city manager made general statements but did not mention her by name, which she argues allowed the threats and harassment to continue.
The lawsuit claims she was not offered protection, housing support or assistance to remove her personal information from the internet.
View the latest headlines from Kansas City, Missouri, and Kansas at fox4kc.com
According to the lawsuit, she was retaliated against at work, with her duties restricted, communications cut off by supervisors and her mental health accommodation initially denied. Watts said she was also excluded from social media team meetings.
The lawsuit says she developed Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD) from the incident and the workplace hostility she experienced.
FOX4 reached out to the city, which said they do not comment on pending litigation. Their response to the lawsuit is due on June 21.
Copyright 2025 Nexstar Media, Inc. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
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