White Teachers Win $2.1M In Discrimination Lawsuit

(LibertySociety.com) – A five-year legal battle proved to be worth its while when three white New York City teachers prevailed in their claim that they were demoted so that minorities could take over their positions.

The settlement agreement of $700,000 per plaintiff was forged after a judge found their evidence of “race-based discrimination” to be compelling. The teachers accused Richard Carranza, the former Schools Chancellor, of making it his personal mission to fight “toxic whiteness” within the Department of Education. One of the plaintiffs was Lois Herrera, who was working as the CEO of the Office of Safety and Youth Development. The Harvard graduate said she was unexpectedly replaced with a black man who only had a GED.

Laura Feijoo was another plaintiff in the lawsuit who was replaced by a black woman without proper licensing to hold the position of Senior Supervising Superintendent. The third plaintiff, Jaye Murray, was demoted from his position in the Office of Counseling Support Programs and was told that his new boss was Herrera’s replacement. The plaintiffs also claimed in the lawsuit that their replacements were given the positions without anyone else having the opportunity to apply. The lawsuit included additional examples of Carranza’s apparent obsession with equity, including a time when he allegedly told employees that they needed to quit if they were not aligned with his agenda.

Carranza was appointed in 2018 by former New York City Mayor Bill DiBlasio, who also centered his entire platform around “equity.” Herrera said that everything changed immediately after Carranza’s appointment. She also said that she was forced to attend a promotion ceremony for her replacement.

While the city agreed to the settlement, it did not admit fault. Instead, a law department spokesperson said that the city still believes that the plaintiffs did not provide sufficient evidence to prove their claims. Shortly after the lawsuit was filed, the Department of Education issued a statement insinuating that the teachers were lying about their experiences.