A Black gay woman claims the city wrongly hired white man for leadership role over her
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A Loris woman is suing the city of Loris for sex and racial discrimination after she was overlooked for a city job, according to a lawsuit.
Jamie C. Johnson, who is described in the suit as a Black gay female, claims that she applied for recreation director on May 28, 2021. Johnson had previously worked for the city’s recreation department, the suit said.
However, city officials did not interview or hire Johnson for the position. Instead, Loris Mayor Todd Harrelson offered the position to a white male candidate without informing City Council, the suit said.
Harrelson said Sept. 8 that he had not seen the lawsuit and could not comment. However, Harrelson said he was not aware of any discrimination from any City Hall officials.
“Johnson was well qualified for that position and should have been chosen for that position,” Johnson’s attorney Beth Bowen said Sept. 14. “We are extremely disappointed that the city denied her that position based on her race and sexual orientation.”
The male candidate declined the position when he learned that the mayor offered him the position without council’s approval, and the position was reopened. Johnson asked the city’s recreation committee chairperson about the position in August 2021, the suit said. The chairperson told Johnson that she was unaware that Johnson had applied for the position and told her to reapply.
Johnson resubmitted her resume for the position and she was given an interview in November 2021. Johnson had a second interview with Harrelson and the City Council on Nov. 23.
Johnson states in the lawsuit that she is openly gay and doesn’t conform to sex stereotypes, the suit said.
Johnson wore a dress shirt, slacks and dress shoes to the interview. Harrelson asked Johnson questions during the interview, such as whether she could handle manual labor and whether she could perform tasks outside of the job description, including cut grass and handle chemicals, the suit said.
Johnson said she could and asked the mayor what he was looking for in a recreation director. Harrelson responded that he was looking for someone to teach the children to grow up and be good law-abiding citizens with moral Christian values, the suit said. Harrelson said that he was “old school” with “Biblical” principals or practices.
Following the interview, Johnson didn’t receive any communication from city officials or council regarding the position. Johnson learned through a local newspaper announcement on Dec. 13, 2021, that the city hired a white male elementary school teacher for the job, despite that Johnson was more qualified, the suit said.
The majority of city employees, including supervisors, are white, and the recreation department employees are white males, the suit said.
The suit is asking for a jury trial on the basis of race and sex discrimination in violation of Title VII, which prohibits employment discrimination based on race, color, religion, sex and national origin. Johnson is seeking compensation to be determined by a jury.
