Yes, indeed! It is widely known that NASCAR has been designed for men. The culture has been dictating that NASCAR is for men. That is perhaps where racism and sexism arises. Or men are just naturally discriminating.

 

Yesterday, Mauricia Grant, a former employee working as a technical inspector in charge for certifying cars in NASCAR’s second-tier Nationwide Series from January 2005 until late October, filed a $250 million lawsuit against NASCAR in U.S. District Court. The complaint that Grant filed in the U.S District Court for the Southern District of New York contains several incidents of alleged sexual harassment and so as alleged racial discrimination that begins the moment she started in NASCAR in January 2005 until late October last year.  

 

Grant contends that she was fired last year just because she complained about the treatment that she receives on the job and because “poor work performance”. In contrary, Grant firmly stated that she had obtained positive performance evaluations and had never received any warnings except the one about her use of “street” language.

 

Moreover, Grant alleges that she was given racially charged names by her co-employees such as “Nappy Headed Mo” and “Queen Sheba”. She was frequently told that she worked on “colored people time”. Likewise, Grant complained that she was sexually harasses by having some male body parts showed in her presence. Grant added in her allegations that when she complained about those said matters, NASCAR officials just told her to deal with it since majority of the men she’s working with are “military men” and also told her she needed to learn how to adjust on how they act for her to be successful Unfortunately, Grant’s suit never progressed because it was not even directed to any single individual and only to those NASCAR officials and supervisors.

 

Grant is hurt by such happenings in her life. (Who wouldn’t be?) She felt alone in such struggle in her life yet she had to do the necessary adjustments. The thing that hurts her more is the fact that she tried her best to her job and avoid her co-workers yet she was and is still appalled by the entire thing. Grant further related that in 2006, she another female co-worker drafted an unidentified letter to NASCAR’s Human Resource department stating their complaint. The letter was discussed but unfortunately, her female co-worker was fired.

Grant declared that she doesn’t want this to be her legacy as the first African-American female to do such (the lawsuit). Having worked in NASCAR was a great opportunity for her. In fact, she loved her job, she felt great, excited. However the harassment that she suffered everyday from the people who have it in them naturally dropped down from the top.

 

Ramsey Piston, NASCAR spokesman, said that the organization had not yet studied the suit. He said that NASCAR doesn’t tolerate such kind of harassment.

 

Benidict P. Morelli of Morelli Ratmer PC, Grant’s lawyer, stated that this is the time for NASCAR to realize that they can not buy everybody to keep silent and that they can not just intimidate everybody and not file a complaint.

 

Mauricia said that her supervisors all praised her. She knew from the very start that once she gets terminated, she doesn’t have an opportunity anymore to find an industry where she can practice her craft yet she firmly stands for her right.

 

Mauricia Grant is truly an athletic woman who went over the wall and faced mean co-workers and competitive chiefs. She was right, totally right, about her decision to stand and fight for her right to be properly treated regardless of her race, her physical appearance, and her gender.