A Black sales worker, who contends that there is almost nothing a white person can ask a Black person without it being offensive, has filed a discrimination lawsuit after their boss remarked, “it’s too dark in here.”
A Black sales worker, who believes that almost any inquiry from a white person could be deemed offensive, has filed a discrimination lawsuit after her boss commented, “it’s too dark in here.” Gifty Robinson initiated legal action against Smile Publications, the Essex-based publishing firm where she was employed, over a series of ‘humiliating’ incidents. Robinson alleged that discriminatory behavior included questions about whether Gifty was her real name, whether she ate with a fork or fingers, and whether she wore a wig.
However, her claims were dismissed by a tribunal, which ruled that expressing a ‘genuine interest’ in someone’s culture, within the context of a positive working relationship, does not constitute racism. The tribunal, held at East London Hearing Centre, was informed that Ms. Robinson, who identifies as Black, has Canadian and Ghanaian heritage.
