Former Employee Alleges Discrimination, 'White Only' Clubhouse At Solar Energy Company
Source: Think Progress
A Black man says he suffered ongoing racial discrimination for months. A Black man has filed a lawsuit against his former employer, a national solar company, saying he faced racial harassment and that a direct manager built a White Only clubhouse inside one of the companys warehouses.
Teshawn Solomon, 36, says that during his time working in Natomas, California for Utah-based Vivint Solar, he experienced ongoing and persistent incidents of racially-based harassment, according to a lawsuit filed Monday in the California Superior Court based in Sacramento County. Solomon worked for the company for nearly a year before resigning.
While working for the company, which specializes in solar energy systems, Solomon claims he was told to reach his black hands out while a Sacramento-based supervisor handed him a box, in addition to being taunted with a banana. The fruit has historically been used to specifically mock and target Black people.
In one of the more jarring incidents, Soloman says his white coworkers built a cardboard clubhouse of sorts around their desks. They reportedly spray-painted the makeshift division with a White Only sign that, according to the Washington Post, remained there for two weeks. I was terrified, Soloman told the Post. The only other African American employee was usually at other warehouses, so I was alone, at night, looking over my shoulder, wondering what else could happen to me....more..
Read more: https://thinkprogress.org/whites-only-solar-discrimination-lawsuit-84efbf1d9ab3/