Nikki Moody sues Bill Fennelly over Racial Discrimination...
- Thread starter Chipper
- Start date
Is "being a jerk" a category that is protected from discrimination?
Once again, if race is the issue, then it seems that the testimony of Seanna Johnson and her mother are going to be quite compelling. Her mother's statements in support of Fennelly are pretty strong.
I think it will just be sad if the even have to testify. The judge should throw it out, but he will "err on the side of caution" to help his buddies make some money.
I haven't read the entire thread but what specifically did Fennely "deny" Moody because of her race?
Well, this just now appears Moody is pulling the race card.
"He isn't racist, but he did things to her because she was black."
"He isn't racist, but he did things to her because she was black."
Her strongest claim seems to be that Chelsea Poppens and others were allowed to continue training (in ISU facilities) after completing their playing careers in anticipation of the WNBA draft, while she was denied that opportunity.
For all we know - there may have been a "good standing" requirement for that privilege. If so, it word of course have to be clearly spelled out.
She is also claiming that she was treated more harshly than white players.
I don't think it has to be clearly spelled out. It would just have to be shown that was the case. Correct me if I'm wrong, but that class was the only one to not be allowed to continue training. There have been black players in the past. That class had behavior problems. I think that is fairly clear.
Moody spoke in conflicting terms, yes. We do not know all that happened behind closed doors and she could have a case. Please don't use an idiom to generalize as the term Race card is pretty loaded so far avoided in this thread.
Well I was responding to your comments about their choice to sit behind the bench and also not be pleased with what they hear.
It's somewhat coincidental that all previous WNBA candidates were white. It seems far-fetched to extrapolate that she was denied access because she's black. There are some things that presumably are privileges earned through being a good citizen in the program, not rights by simply being in the program or being talented. Using facilities after the season has ended seems more of a privilege. She was not a Senior CLASS Award candidate, like several of the talented seniors. That is a distinction of character plus talent. If you browse photos of the team participating in community service activities, she was often not involved (or often enough that her absence was noticeable). Yet other black players have been actively involved in these activities.
What he said:
"He can demean players... he can call them worthless... he can even call them the C word. That isn't lawsuit worthy in my mind."
That is what I responded to, not whether it was what this case is about but narrowly to his comment that those things he said are not "lawsuit worthy"
They choose to sit somewhere that they KNOW they will be unhappy. You can still get courtside seats far enough away from Fennelly to not hear most of what he says. They got what they asked for - up close & personal seats by the bench. If they don't like what they hear, that's on them. Fennelly has been Fennelly for as long as he's been around.
At any rate, it is STILL immaterial to the case (which is about a player being discriminated against due to her race), and is an effort to derail.
And I was agreeing with you - those actions can be considered harassment, and could in some cases be lawsuit worthy. But, once again, they are not the basis of this case.
Pretty sure there was an article in the Ames Tribune that Nikki was taking online courses her final semester and went home to Texas after the season was over.
Also, Brynn graduated at semester, so why would she stick around once the season was over? The only player still physically on campus was Fallon.
If I remember right if you have damages caused by negligence of the state acting in its official capacity you have to present those damages to the attorney general for determination of payment. You can only file suit if the AG fails to do so within 6 months. There are also a long list of things you can't even make tort claims against the state for. However discrimination and retribution fall under different code I believe the civil rights commission can give "the right to sue" for discrimination and retribution falls under the whistle blower protections. Hence if she sued for anything else she would have had to take actual damages to the AG and they would have just cut a check for the amount they deem reasonable. I may be remembering that wrong but would explain the narrow scope of this suit.
I thought this was very telling:
"They’re really not even dependent on you being a racist. Nowhere in there does Nikki allege that Bill Fennelly is a racist, and that’s not something that has to be proved in this type of case. I don’t want to speak beyond that, but the key is you don’t have to be a racist to discriminate, and there is no allegation that Bill Fennelly is a racist.â€
So my guess it seema that they are going to focus on showing that he didn't provide practice facilities to black players after they graduated and he didn't let them pick their rooms senior season like previous seniors who were white. They will claim retribution and go digging for correspondence between BF and the San Antonio Coach. Just my guess but I bet everything else was meant to create public perception of wrong doing and damage BF in the court of public opinion.
So what, I choose to be an ISU fan even though I know it is hard on my nuts. Doesn't mean I can't complain about it, or share my relevant experiences about it. I think you are making a strawman is all. They were just sharing their experience and you made it about complaining about it while choosing to sit there. It just doesn't really matter. Also, there are two relevant t issues at this point. The case and whether Fennely's conduct is appropriate. The light is on him now and if you think the totality won't be examined by the court of public opinion (rightly or wrongly) I think this thread and the media coverage proves otherwise. If he called them an unt with a c. Or is as bad as people say he may not survive it even if he didn't discriminate. Sometimes it takes the spotlight to expose what happens in the shadows. Even if the spotlight is looking for something else.
I bet our 2017 commits Rae Johnson and Kristen Scott are going to hear the negative recruiting pitch a LOT this summer. Early letter of intent dates is November 9. This year’s class was a hail Mary pass after they missed on all of their preferred targets. These two gals have been committed for a long time(as sophomores) and challenge might be to hold on to them.
The sooner this lawsuit is resolved the better. Without reading back through hundreds of posts, was there any speculation on time frame for all of this?
The sooner this lawsuit is resolved the better. Without reading back through hundreds of posts, was there any speculation on time frame for all of this?
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