WASHINGTON (AP) — A unanimous Supreme Court made it easier Thursday to bring lawsuits over so-called reverse discrimination, siding with an Ohio woman who claims she didn’t get a job and then was demoted because she is straight.
Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson wrote for the court that federal civil rights law draws no distinction between members of majority and minority groups.
The court ruled in an appeal from Marlean Ames, who has worked for the Ohio Department of Youth Services for more than 20 years.
Some of the new administration’s anti-DEI initiatives have been temporarily blocked in federal court.
Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 bars sex discrimination in the workplace.
WASHINGTON (AP) — On Thursday, a unanimous Supreme Court sided with an Ohio woman who says she was demoted after being denied a job because she is straight, easing the process of filing lawsuits over so-called reverse discrimination.
When members of a majority group, such as white and heterosexual people, file a lawsuit for discrimination under federal law, courts in 20 states and the District of Columbia had previously set a higher standard. The justices’ ruling has an impact on these cases.
According to a court opinion by Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, members of majority and minority groups are not treated differently under federal civil rights law.
“There is no room for courts to impose special requirements on majority-group plaintiffs alone because Congress established the same protections for every ‘individual’ — regardless of whether that individual belongs to a minority or majority group,” Jackson wrote.
Marlean Ames, who has over 20 years of experience with the Ohio Department of Youth Services, appealed the decision to the court.
In his separate opinion, Justice Clarence Thomas pointed out that some of the nation’s “biggest and most prestigious employers have openly discriminated against those they deem members of so-called majority groups,” even though he concurred with Jackson’s view. “.”.
Together with Justice Neil Gorsuch, Thomas claimed that “American employers have long been ‘obsessed’ with ‘diversity, equity, and inclusion’ initiatives and affirmative action plans,” citing a brief submitted by America First Legal, a conservative organization established by Trump aide Stephen Miller. “”.
The Supreme Court is expected to rule in favor of a woman who claims to have experienced reverse workplace discrimination.
The conservative majority on the court prohibited the use of race in university admissions two years ago. Since taking office in January, President Donald Trump has sought to terminate government support for DEI initiatives abroad and ordered the federal government to discontinue its DEI policies. In federal court, some of the new administration’s anti-DEI initiatives have been temporarily halted.
The Civil Rights Act of 1964 forbids sex discrimination in the workplace under Title VII. A court of trial and the Sixth U. S. . Ames was not upheld by the Circuit Court of Appeals.
The 6th Circuit is one of the courts that has mandated an extra requirement for individuals such as Ames, demonstrating “background circumstances” that may include statistical evidence of a pattern of discrimination against members of the majority group or the fact that LGBTQ people made the decisions that affected Ames.
According to the appeals court, Ames did not specify any such conditions.
“This additional ‘background circumstances’ requirement is inconsistent with the text of Title VII and our case law interpreting the statute,” Jackson wrote. “”.
