A former project manager for a Pleasanton construction company filed a lawsuit against the company and its owners today accusing them of racial discrimination and harassment and subjecting her to unwanted racial commentary and differential treatment.
Filed in Alameda County Superior Court on behalf of Tishay Wright, a black woman, by San Francisco attorney Christopher Dolan, the suit alleges that Southland Construction Management Inc. and its owners, Kenneth and Anita Hayden, decorated their office with photographs of President Donald Trump and Confederate flags saying, "The Southland shall rise again."
Dolan said in a statement that the Haydens appeared to be "proud of their handiwork" and had photographs taken of themselves in front of the Confederate flag, which he said is "the offensive symbol of slavery," with Kenneth dressed as Donald Trump and Anita appearing to be a Trump supporter with a Confederate flag purse strung over her shoulder.
Dolan said Kenneth Hayden later gave the purse to Wright as a Christmas gift at the company Christmas Party with the offensive photos of him and his wife inside.
Wright said in the statement that she filed the suit "because no one should be treated this way in America in the year 2017."
"This is not Alabama in the 1940's. This country is going backwards and it has to stop," Wright said.
Her attorney Dolan said, "This is just a sign of how people feel empowered by our current president, and his racist and sexist statements about women and minorities, to blatantly harass and discriminate against others."
"The message couldn't be any clearer: 'I stand with Trump and I'm racist. If you don't like it then get out of my business and out of my country,'" Dolan said.
The suit also accuses Kenneth Hayden of assault and battery, saying that on one occasion he threw a cellphone at Wright, which then ricocheted off of her desk and hit her in the arm.
The suit alleges Wright witnessed Kenneth and Anita Hayden making "racist comments" about other employees of different ethnicities at Southland, including Hispanic and Sikh employees.
The suit, which says Wright worked at the company from June 22, 2015, until March 9 of this year, seeks unspecified general and punitive damages.
Kenneth and Anita Hayden couldn't immediately be reached for comment.
The company, which was founded in 2000 and has its headquarters on Valley Avenue, says on its website that, "Integrity and service are key for Southland Construction."
The company says its mission is "to serve the construction needs of commercial, retail, and industrial businesses with integrity, quality and accountability, while meeting budgets and timelines in order to glorify the Lord Jesus Christ and restore honesty to the marketplace."
The company says it "seeks to serve our customers, vendors and employees as we serve the Lord Jesus Christ" by displaying qualities such as "honesty, integrity, loyalty, respect for others and ourselves, perseverance, accountability and teamwork."
Comments
Oak Hill
on Jun 9, 2017 at 12:04 am
on Jun 9, 2017 at 12:04 am
"Dolan said Kenneth Hayden later gave the purse to Wright as a Christmas gift at the company Christmas Party with the offensive photos of him and his wife inside."
.
The company owner gave a black woman a purse decorated in the style of a Confederate flag because that's what Jesus would have done.
SF Gate: Web Link
.........
Castlewood
on Jun 9, 2017 at 2:49 am
on Jun 9, 2017 at 2:49 am
They are not answering the phone number listed- however I was able to get their address through a google search and verified it through property records. Please mail these folks a letter letting them know that racist hate is not acceptable in Pleasanton. [Portion removed for privacy considerations]
Racist hate is not welcome in Pleasanton!
California Reflections
on Jun 9, 2017 at 9:36 am
on Jun 9, 2017 at 9:36 am
I can't beleive Trump's name was mentioned. I am so sick of that. I can understand why black people don't want to see the Confederate flag, but we are all confronted with things we don't want to hear or see.
When did she become aware of Southland's office decor? Sometimes we have to vote with our feet.
Oak Tree Acres
on Jun 9, 2017 at 10:07 am
on Jun 9, 2017 at 10:07 am
I doubt she ever mentioned to the owners that she was offended. What is not racist anymore? Reminds me of a shakedown that happened a while back on the east coast where an entity was sued because someone apparently "looked" at the plaintiff in a disparitive way. Run for a bleeding heart lawyer, get your $5,000 settlement (lawyer gets half) and you are no longer horrified. A reliable card to play. This has been happening long before Trump arrived.
Oak Hill
on Jun 9, 2017 at 10:24 am
on Jun 9, 2017 at 10:24 am
@mike :"I can understand why black people don't want to see the Confederate flag, but we are all confronted with things we don't want to hear or see."
Hmmmm. I guess that by the same token you would say that you can understand why Jews don't want to see a swastika flag displayed in their workplace, but that we are all "confronted with things we don't want to hear and see".
You do know that under slavery blacks were raped, whipped, murdered, sold, and otherwise degraded as human beings, don't you?
Another Pleasanton neighborhood
on Jun 9, 2017 at 1:19 pm
on Jun 9, 2017 at 1:19 pm
According to the article here
Web Link
She continued to work there after the incidents including the christmas party, until she was "removed" in March. Then the lawsuit was filed.
So does that mean if they didn't remove her she would be okay working in this environment as long as she was drawing a paycheck? There are specific federal and state agencies that directly deal with EEO but no one was gonna hear about this if she didn't get fired?
Pleasanton Valley
on Jun 9, 2017 at 2:58 pm
on Jun 9, 2017 at 2:58 pm
I just read the article in the local section of the East Bay Times and looked at the photos. I also understand that these employers (for Christmas) gave this black woman a purse with the stars and bars on it.
These employers are either extremely racist or extremely stupid, or both.
They deserve to be sued. I'm not a big supporter of using the courts to punish people, but they idiots really deserve it.
Canyon Meadows
on Jun 9, 2017 at 9:57 pm
on Jun 9, 2017 at 9:57 pm
In this day and age, where you have to be careful of everything you say or do, I a surprised the owners did not think things through? Consequences now for everything. i have to say a bit of an odd gift, including the pictures, give the temperature of our society. Surely the owners did not think this through.
Highland Oaks
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:38 am
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:38 am
Seems the PW is already trying this case in the press. Not defending the Haydens' alleged actions, if true and accurate. Also, some in the press will breathlessly figure out a way to blame Donald Trump for this. Look for a non-stop panel discussion on CNN.
Oak Hill
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:49 am
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:49 am
@ItsTrumpsFault
Seems that the Haydens' themselves drew Trump into this, didn't they?
Stoneridge Orchards
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:56 am
on Jun 10, 2017 at 9:56 am
It's great that people are revealing their true colors. That way we can talk about racism as a real and current social problem (not something that happened in the old days), and make it clear to everyone any form is NEVER ok.
Amador Estates
on Jun 10, 2017 at 10:03 am
on Jun 10, 2017 at 10:03 am
I'm not a journalist, but it seems irresponsible to me for the PW to publish the photos, potential evidence in a future legal proceeding.