
Fired D.E.I. Administrator Sues the University of Michigan
Rachel Dawson, the former director of the university's office of academic multicultural initiatives, denied in her lawsuit that she had made antisemitic remarks last year.
Two Jewish professors from other universities had accused Ms. Dawson of saying in a private conversation that the university was 'controlled by wealthy Jews,' that Jewish students were not in need of her office's diversity services because they are 'wealthy and privileged' and that 'Jewish people have no genetic DNA that would connect them to the land of Israel,' according to documents that were part of a complaint from the Anti-Defamation League of Michigan.
In her lawsuit, filed on Monday in the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Ms. Dawson painted a starkly different version of events. And she said that there was racial bias in what she called the unusual process that the public university used to investigate the complaint and in its decision to side with her accusers.
'Historically, Black women have been subjected to stereotypes that portray them as confrontational or untrustworthy,' Ms. Dawson wrote during a disciplinary review, according to her lawsuit.
A lawyer for Ms. Dawson, Amanda M. Ghannam, said she would file another lawsuit in state court, which will claim that the university violated Ms. Dawson's free speech and due process rights. Under Michigan law, those claims against a state institution cannot be brought in federal court, Ms. Ghannam said.
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U.S. commerce secretary dismisses question that free trade with Canada is dead
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NFLPA's J.C. Tretter resigns after backlash against candidacy to replace Lloyd Howell, uses 'Game of Thrones' character to defend himself
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After Howell resigned Thursday, it was reported Friday he had been discovered to have expensed more than $3,000 at strip clubs. The NFLPA has never been anywhere close to the most prestigious or effective player union in sports, but the latest developments were beyond the pale enough for many that Tretter couldn't escape the backlash either. J.C. Tretter compares himself to a 'Game of Thrones' character while defending decisions In a lengthy interview with CBS, Tretter defended himself on many of the above contentions, most notably the notion that he pushed Howell into the executive director role from the shadows. Howell was one of two finalists, alongside former SAG-AFTRA director David White. Tretter said that while Howell performed better in interviews, the NFLPA executive committee voted 10-1 in favor of White over Howell, with Tretter among the 10. However, the committee did not share its preference with the board of 32 player representatives, who voted for Howell. 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