An employee of a North Carolina school district has filed a discrimination lawsuit after her white colleagues created and signed a petition stating her natural hair was “unprofessional” and “inappropriate”, according to The Charlotte Observer.

Kimberly Tigner who worked as the career development liaison at Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools says she was repeatedly harassed by her co-workers.

Atlanta Black Star reports that Tigner described the discrimination she faced while working for the school district as “brutal and relentless.”

The lawsuit was filed late last year in the Western District of North Carolina. The lawsuit states that Tigner was subject to “racially-motivated criticism and bullying” by her supervisor who is responsible for circulating the petition. The supervisor claimed she had the right to do so because she has Black friends.

The hostile behavior amongst her coworkers also impacted her 17-year-old son. A school official banned Tigner’s son from CMS property because the supervisor felt threatened by his presence as a Black male.

Tigner decided to look for employment elsewhere after she was met with more hostility from school administrators after speaking up for herself. Now the district is pushing back against her claims.

“Courts have rejected claims of racial harassment based on conduct far more egregious than what Plaintiff has alleged in this case,” the school district stated.

According to the Associated Press, the school district says the case should be dismissed because the employee hasn't been able to pinpoint any institutional racial discrimination.

The black community has continuously faced discrimination based on their hair in professional settings and legislators have only recently begun to take action.

California became the first state to ban discrimination based on hair back in July, as previously reported by Blavity. The C.R.O.W.N Act was signed into law by Governor Gavin Newsom and is meant to protect people with Afro-textured hair from discrimination in the work-place and public schools.

Kimberly-Tigner

Get relevant content delivered to you once a week