Cases in the US multiply in Black History Month and involve football: “A slave plantation”
FROM THE CORRESPONDENT FROM WASHINGTON. Kaylen Barker is 25 years old and a homosexual African American. He had a contract with Tesla until October 29 and worked at the Fremont plant in California. But after refusing to sign a document in which she had to admit she committed an act of insubordination, she was fired. The act of insubordination was none other than having reported to the factory management the constant insults, violence, harassment for his sexual orientation and the color of the skin he suffered from two white workers. One day one of these had approached her brandishing a red-hot tool and threatened her by pouring out the entire collection of racist and sexist insults. She complained to the personnel department and the man was fired. But two weeks later he had reappeared at the factory. “I didn’t understand why he was back in his place. It was like being tortured again and suddenly returning to before the era of civil rights, ”said Barker who sued Tesla for this, accusing her of not being vigilant, allowing homophobic and racist attitudes to continue.
His case is not an isolated one. Just as Barker was on his way to court in Alameda County, a jury sentenced Tesla to pay $ 137 million to Owen Diaz, a company employee between 2015 and 2016 who had been targeted by colleagues, invited “to return to Africa”. , called “negro” (the unpronounceable N-world and culmination of offenses), victim of racist gestures with KKK writings, swastikas and supremacist messages. “I thought – he said – that working for Tesla meant entering a modern way, instead, I found scenes worthy of the Jim Crow era”. The figure indicated by the jury represents the highest ever allocated in a case of racial discrimination. Valerie Capers Workman, company staff number two, admitted that the testimonies confirmed the insults, but that these words “were expressed in a friendly way.” The Tesla of 2016, the one in which the story of Owen Diaz had matured, is not the same as today, commented Workman obviously ignoring that the story of Kaylen is of 2021.
Discrimination against blacks continues to be a wound in American society, February is dedicated to the memory of the community (Black History Month). As many as 14 African American colleges (HBCUs) across the nation on Monday reported receiving threats of attacks. Some have been forced to close, others have postponed the lessons. The rector of Howard University in Washington said tensions in Black History Month are frequent, but the level of threats reached this year has broken all records. Since January 4, college has been locked down three times due to the risk of an attack. A Pew Research survey last spring found that 80% of Americans believe that forms of racism against blacks are still alive. African Americans believe that the way to guarantee the black community the MedeseThe rights of others are on the rise: 58% believe that major institutions and many laws need to be totally rewritten.
Perhaps even the rules of the NFL, the professional football league where in the face of 70% of black players, next season will see only a black coach on the bench. Discrimination is living on his skin – and denounced it – Brian Flores, former Miami Dolphins technical chief who was rejected for the job by the New York Giants. The African-American coach has initiated a class action against the entire League and the New York team: “I was interviewed for a job to respect the so-called Rooney Rule”, which obliges the NFL franchises to also consider coaches who are part of the minorities. In reality, the seat on the bench had already been entrusted to a white, Brian Daboll. “The NFL is segregated by race and run like a slave plantation”, accused Flores who yesterday confirmed at CNN that he will not withdraw the complaint and that “my battle goes far beyond football”.
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