Georgia Injury Lawyer Blog

Paula Deen, her brother, and her companies have been sued for racial discrimination, assault, battery, sexual harassment, amongst other unlawful, humiliating conduct practiced upon their employees. Ms. Lisa T. Jackson is the plaintiff in this matter and the former general manager at one of Paula's restaurants. Ms. Jackson worked for Paula Deen from approximately 2005 to 2010.

Hired to do "a man's job:"
Paula Deen put her in the position of general manager to clean up her brother Bubba's failing restaurant which was called "Uncle Bubba's." At that time, the complaint alleges that Paul Deen stated, "if you think I have worked this hard to lose everything because of a piece of p***y think again. . . And now I am going to do something I have never done. I am going to put a woman in a man's job" giving Ms. Jackson six months to turn the restaurant around.

Called "my little Jew girl:"
The complaint alleges that in six months, Ms. Deen's directive was accomplished and as a result she was called "my little Jew girl" by Paula's brother and "almost Jewish" by their Certified Public Accountant (CPA). As general manager, Ms. Jackson alleges that in spite of her accomplishments, she was not paid a salary equal to her male counterparts and was told by the CPA that "women are stupid because they think they can work and have babies and get everything done" and that Paula's brother Bubba "would not permit a woman to be paid any more than she was already paid."

Ms. Jackson stated that she and her employees were subjected to oppressive sexual and racial harassment including being subjected to inescapable pornography that brother Bubba brought into her office every single day.

Sexual Harassment:
The complaint alleges that Paula Deen's brother Bubba would ask Ms. Jackson if she would bring pictures of when she was young for him to view, would comment on her physical appearance, comment on other female employees physical appearance, and regularly made abusive comments that included talking about men putting beer on top of a woman's head while "she is giving you a blowjob." Ms. Jackson also alleges that Paula Deen's brother Bubba Hiers forcibly and unlawfully grabbed her face, kissing her and spitting upon her.

Racial Discrimination Including Use of the N-Word:
Ms. Jackson (who is Caucasian) alleges in her complaint that both Paula Deen and her brother Bubba Hiers also subjected her to racially discriminatory conduct every single day. For example, the complaint Ms. Jackson states that when she asked Paula Deen what type of uniforms she preferred the servers to wear, Paula Deen responded by stating:

"Well what I would really like is a bunch of little n*ggers to wear long sleeve white shirts, black shorts and black bow ties, you know in the Shirley Temple days, they used to tap dance around. . .Now that would be a true southern wedding wouldn't it? But we can't do that because the media would be on me about that." laughed Paula Deen to Ms. Jackson.

Keeping Blacks in the Back:
Ms. Jackson states in her complaint that all African American staff persons at her restaurant were required to use one restroom in the back of the restaurant and not the customer restrooms even though the white staff were allowed to. Additionally, she alleges that African American staff persons were not allowed to go to the front of the restaurant and that when Ms. Jackson hired two African American hostesses, Paula's brother Bubba Hiers repeatedly complained. Ms. Jackson also alleges that Bubba would start drinking whiskey at approximately upon 10:00 a.m. where he began his day of drinking and abusive behavior.

"Don't You Wish You Could Rub All The Black Off of You And Be Like Me?":
The complaint alleges many of Bubba's abuse including stating: "I wish I could put all those n*ggers [in the kitchen] on a boat to Africa;" that he told a black security guard: "don't you wish you could rub all the black off of you and be like me. . you just look dirty I bet you wish you could;" told a vendor that he had a "bunch of coons in this kitchen," told jokes using the word n*gger in the presence of others, physically and violently shook an African American kitchen staff person and challenged other black kitchen workers to fight him.

After five years of being subjected to Bubba Hier's abusive violent conduct Ms. Jackson states she began developing enormous stress which caused her chest pains, panic attacks and later serious medical consequences which made her doctor insist she stay away from work and request that he admit her to the hospital. The complaint allege that she made pleas for relief to senior management reporting the discriminatory conditions and abusive treatment she confronted.

Ms. Jackson is asking that the Court permanently enjoin Paula Deen, her brother, and her companies from further unlawful conduct including awarding her damages and attorney fees.

To view the actual complaint, click here: Jackson v. Deen, et al. Complaint(1).pdf

Continue reading "Good Georgia Lawyer Discusses Paula Deen Lawsuit For Racial Discrimination, Use of the N-Word, Sexual Harassment of Employees" »

Good Georgia Lawyer is very happy to report that the United States Department of Education Office of Civil Rights is cracking down on how colleges and universities report sexual misconduct.

The tougher response comes after a federal investigation identified problems at a number of colleges where sexual assault victims were re-victimized by university policies and procedures.

The Obama administration approach is also in response to the previous administration's laissez faire approach. Now however, colleges and universities are all on notice that they must respond appropriately and accurately report sexual misconduct incidents. Additionally, feds have launched investigations on certain campuses.

In April, the US Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (OCR) sent a letter to all colleges and universities clarifying specific ways that sexual misconduct should be dealt with under Title IX, a 1972 gender-equity law governing educational institutions that receive federal funds.

Among other things, the letter addresses appropriate time lines for resolving cases, supporting victims, and curing hostile environments. Thus far, at least 25 colleges and universities, ranging from Stanford University to the University of Virginia, have changed and implemented new policies in response to the letter say OCR officials calling it the "wake up call" that was needed.

One big issue is that college campuses must now use a "preponderance of the evidence" standard when adjudicating sexual assault cases. That means a university judicial board needs to be just over 50 percent sure the incident occurred. Some campuses had used a "clear and convincing" standard, which required about 75 percent and then some, like Stanford, had even required "beyond a reasonable doubt," similar to a criminal trial.

In addition to the April letter, OCR has been conducting inquiries and compliance reviews, prompted by concerns at specific schools. OCR reached a settlement with the University of Notre Dame this past summer which came about when a student committed suicide after accusing a fellow student of sexual assault. The school agreed to improve all the sexual assault policies, use a preponderance of the evidence standard, and resolve cases in a timely manner. Currently, Yale University is being investigated by the OCR as well concerning allegations of sexual harassment.

What Does The Law Say Regarding Sexual Assault At Colleges and Universities?

Title IX of the Education Amendments of 1972 ("Title IX"), 20 U.S.C. Sec.1681, et seq., prohibits sex discrimination in any federally funded educational program or activity. Title IX also covers sexual violence and obligates schools to do the following. Once a school knows or reasonably should know a sexual assault it must take appropriate action to investigate:

• If sexual violence did happen the school must take immediate effective response to end it, prevent it, and address the effects.
• A school must take steps to protect the victim.
• A school must provide a complaint procedure for students to report sexual discrimination, harassment and assault. The procedures must present an equal opportunity for the accused and accuser to present evidence and appeal.
• A school must now use the preponderance of the evidence standard (51 percent) in adjudicating student judicial hearings.
• A school must notify both parties of the outcome.

Good Georgia Lawyer is encouraged because fortunately, these civil rights laws will now protect more and more students who are victims of sexual assault.

If you are a college student who has experienced a sexual crime on campus you are welcome to contact us to discuss your legal rights. But first, immediately seek medical treatment to preserve DNA and other related evidence. Call us though. We can provide legal counsel via telephone if you are too far away from our Atlanta office but still in Georgia. If you are outside of Georgia, we would be happy to refer you to another lawyer.

If you are a college or a university administrator, Williams Oinonen LLC offers legal consulting, workshops and seminars to train faculty and staff on a variety of legal issues that help insure that institutions comply with the law, avoid liability, and aid in promoting a positive university environment for all students.