The Michigan Court of Appeals has ruled that both black and white workers can sue for racial discrimination based on their treatment by a black supervisor.
In Graham v Ford, Yarborough and the Department of Corrections, (October 1, 1999), several employees claimed that their supervisor discriminated against whites in job assignments and duties and constantly referred to them as "honkies" and as "the honkey clan" or "the white boy clique." The black employees claimed that this same supervisor discriminated against them because they "associated" with the white employees. The case against all defendants had been dismissed by the trial court. The court of appeals determined that "the broad language of the civil rights act and the policies behind the act" should be read to include protection against discrimination based on association.
According to the court of appeals, the supervisor "managed through a perception of race." He made various remarks to black employees such as "being too friendly with whites" and "belonging to the white boy clique." He also called black employees "Uncle Toms." The court ruled that the testimony showed that blacks who associated with whites were treated adversely by their black supervisor and that such treatment was sufficient to support a civil rights claim.
The Graham case is a reminder to employers that an employee's race and/or the employee's associations based on race should not play any role in employment decisions. Moreover, the mere fact that a manager and the affected employee are of the same race does not insulate discriminatory actions.