Fired For Being White

Ana the Ist · Jul 24, 2019

Ann Arbor principal says she was forced out for being white, files $5M lawsuit

A principal in Ann Arbor, Michigan, claims that she was fired for being white....

Shannon Blick, 39, had run Lawton Elementary School for five years and possessed what her lawyer calls a "spotless and pristine employment record" before she was placed on administrative leave in April and effectively forced to resign.

"White people have rights," said William Tishkoff, Lawton's lawyer. "So yeah, this is a reverse (discrimination) case. Right now, it's very timely in terms of what's happening in our country."

The principal is claiming that when they lost a black assistant principal, a new one was brought in immediately....bypassing the normal hiring process. She claims she was effectively forced out to make room for the black assistant principal to takeover her job....

But Tishkoff said the district has treated white administrators unfairly by subjecting them to hostility in the workplace and passing them over for advancement so that African Americans can get ahead.

"I've had a lot of people come up to me and say, 'It's about time, '" Tishkoff said of the lawsuit.

What do you think? Was she being pushed out for legitimate reasons? Or was she pushed out to give her job to a minority?

By "pushed out"...it sounds like they placed her on paid leave and refused her entry to the school for so long that she had to quit so she could pay her bills. It's a tactic commonly used when there's no legitimate reason to fire someone.

What do you think? Institutional racism against whites....or no big deal? Is she lying....or has a legitimate gripe?

Arcangl86 · Jul 24, 2019

I want to wait until more facts come out, but this if true

Another principal told Blick the district was investigating her because a custodian at Lawton had stolen $25,000 from the school over a four-year period and Blick was being held responsible. She was urged to resign before the end of the school year June 30, the lawsuit said.

makes me think the admin leave was justified.

Zoii · Jul 24, 2019

Ana the Ist said:
Ann Arbor principal says she was forced out for being white, files $5M lawsuit

A principal in Ann Arbor, Michigan, claims that she was fired for being white....

The principal is claiming that when they lost a black assistant principal, a new one was brought in immediately....bypassing the normal hiring process. She claims she was effectively forced out to make room for the black assistant principal to takeover her job....

What do you think? Was she being pushed out for legitimate reasons? Or was she pushed out to give her job to a minority?

By "pushed out"...it sounds like they placed her on paid leave and refused her entry to the school for so long that she had to quit so she could pay her bills. It's a tactic commonly used when there's no legitimate reason to fire someone.

What do you think? Institutional racism against whites....or no big deal? Is she lying....or has a legitimate gripe?

Sounds like a disgruntled employee with no balanced facts to determine the truth of the matter

NightHawkeye · Jul 24, 2019

Ana the Ist said:
What do you think? Was she being pushed out for legitimate reasons? Or was she pushed out to give her job to a minority?

It might depend on the color of the custodian who stole $25,000.

What is obvious is that Ann Arbor has far more black representation in administrative positions than is reflective of either the general community or the country at large. Are blacks punished by being forced into administrative positions there ... or are these positions coveted by blacks?

jayem · Jul 24, 2019

Not enough info to give an informed opinion.

Off-topic: I lived in AA for 3 years in the late 70s doing post-grad training at the U of M. A great little town in most respects. But some of the public services back then were wanting. Like the worst pot-holes I've ever seen, that took forever to get filled. I'm talking championship tire and suspension killers. You'd think a civilized northern city would have better street maintenance.

rambot · Jul 24, 2019

Fired for being white seems undersupported by facts presented.

RDKirk · Jul 24, 2019

Ana the Ist said:
Ann Arbor principal says she was forced out for being white, files $5M lawsuit

A principal in Ann Arbor, Michigan, claims that she was fired for being white....

The principal is claiming that when they lost a black assistant principal, a new one was brought in immediately....bypassing the normal hiring process. She claims she was effectively forced out to make room for the black assistant principal to takeover her job....

What do you think? Was she being pushed out for legitimate reasons? Or was she pushed out to give her job to a minority?

By "pushed out"...it sounds like they placed her on paid leave and refused her entry to the school for so long that she had to quit so she could pay her bills. It's a tactic commonly used when there's no legitimate reason to fire someone.

What do you think? Institutional racism against whites....or no big deal? Is she lying....or has a legitimate gripe?

Of course, we can reply as you usually do: Not enough information to make an opinion.

Ana the Ist · Jul 24, 2019

RDKirk said:
Not enough information to make an opinion.

That's never stopped you before RD

thecolorsblend · Jul 24, 2019

The beauty of this is that legal proceedings will hopefully result in the truth coming to light and, hopefully, justice being served.

Until then, there's nothing wrong with keeping an open mind.

RDKirk · Jul 24, 2019

Ana the Ist said:
Ann Arbor principal says she was forced out for being white, files $5M lawsuit
<snip>
The principal is claiming that when they lost a black assistant principal, a new one was brought in immediately....bypassing the normal hiring process.

But is the "normal process" normally a simple transfer of a school official from one post to a post of the identical level within the school district? Or is the "normal process" normally involve hiring someone from outside the district or promoting a teacher to an administrative position? There might be two different processes that are both "normal" involving different hiring situations.

She claims she was effectively forced out to make room for the black assistant principal to takeover her job....

That doesn't make any sense unless the new assistant principal has been promoted to principal and they've hired another assistant principal.

What do you think? Was she being pushed out for legitimate reasons? Or was she pushed out to give her job to a minority?

There is the issue of the embezzling custodian, which appears to be the only negative factor against the principal, and that's pretty sketchy. However, that's only a matter of the sheerest hearsay. I'd think a halfway decent reporter would have been able to get some corroboration on that.

How that plays out will have a significant influence on this case, inasmuch as it's the only thing the board seems to have against her.

By "pushed out"...it sounds like they placed her on paid leave and refused her entry to the school for so long that she had to quit so she could pay her bills. It's a tactic commonly used when there's no legitimate reason to fire someone.

The bolded portion doesn't make any sense.

Ana the Ist · Jul 24, 2019

RDKirk said:
But is the "normal process" normally a simple transfer of a school official from one post to a post of the identical level within the school district? Or is the "normal process" normally involve hiring someone from outside the district or promoting a teacher to an administrative position? There might be two different processes that are both "normal" involving different hiring situations.

A valid point....I don't know. It seems like the complaint is suggesting that from her experience regarding the hiring of assistant principals, it was unusual.

That doesn't make any sense unless the new assistant principal has been promoted to principal and they've hired another assistant principal.

Which the article doesn't say. I don't know who is currently principal.

There is the issue of the embezzling custodian, which appears to be the only negative factor against the principal, and that's pretty sketchy. However, that's only a matter of the sheerest hearsay. I'd think a halfway decent reporter would have been able to get some corroboration on that.

Yeah any embezzlement is bad...but it seems like a rather small amount daily, it's not like the principal left 25k on her desk and went home for the night.

That, or it could be made up....hard to say.

How that plays out will have a significant influence on this case, inasmuch as it's the only thing the board seems to have against her.

Yeah, assuming that it's a real thing.

The bolded portion doesn't make any sense.

I'm assuming paid leave like most jobs is based upon a "minimum hours worked" type of setup. You get paid, but it's not what you'd get paid if you were actually working.

I could be wrong though.

Ana the Ist · Jul 24, 2019

RDKirk said:
But is the "normal process" normally a simple transfer of a school official from one post to a post of the identical level within the school district? Or is the "normal process" normally involve hiring someone from outside the district or promoting a teacher to an administrative position? There might be two different processes that are both "normal" involving different hiring situations.

That doesn't make any sense unless the new assistant principal has been promoted to principal and they've hired another assistant principal.

There is the issue of the embezzling custodian, which appears to be the only negative factor against the principal, and that's pretty sketchy. However, that's only a matter of the sheerest hearsay. I'd think a halfway decent reporter would have been able to get some corroboration on that.

How that plays out will have a significant influence on this case, inasmuch as it's the only thing the board seems to have against her.

The bolded portion doesn't make any sense.

Here's an article with some more details...

https://www.google.com/amp/s/beta.w...s-suing-racial-discrimination/?outputType=amp

"Thus it looks like it might be better if you spend this time on Administrative Leave to look for administrative or teaching jobs outside of Ann Arbor,” he wrote, according to the lawsuit. “It appears HRS has a strong case against you for termination. If that happens, you won’t get any administrative or teaching job anywhere in Michigan and criminal charges could also occur.”

An Ann Arbor police spokeswoman did not return an immediate request for information about whether there were any criminal investigations at the school. A spokesman told MLive on Monday that it had no reports about overbilling at the school."

So it's possible that the whole "janitor embezzlement" thing was just a story given to her to try and scare her into quitting. Hard to say.

This also seems relevant...

"During this time, she asks that you please respect her privacy,” it said. Blick says that she never gave the school district permission to speak on her behalf.

She met with administrators on May 7. At one meeting, the lawsuit says, she was “slandered and defamed” by an administrator who made “outrageous, humiliating, inhumane and patently false accusations regarding Ms. Blick’s conduct, purportedly on and off work premises."

My guess is that whatever was said to her during that meeting is what caused her to conclude this was racial discrimination.

Fired For Being White

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