posted on Thursday, October 26, 2006 1:45 PM
by
Lou Michels
Hostile Environments, Part II
On Wednesday, October 25, 2006, a former editor in chief of the Source magazine, a popular hip hop monthly, won $15.5 million in a suit that originally alleged sexual harassment, gender discrimination, defamation, retaliatory discharge, and maintaining a hostile work environment. Hip hop culture hostile to women? Who knew?
Kimberly Osorio, the former editor in chief, lost her job allegedly for “poor performance”, which included a decision to publish a cover photo of rapper Nellie without his posse and running a negative review of a CD by another rapper, "Fat Joe". I, for one, cannot imagine two clearer instances of job neglect and incompetence.
Osorio testified that her bosses repeatedly begged her for sex and that another editor threatened to physically assault her. She testified that life in the Source’s offices in New York included watching pornographic videos, graphic threats of violence, and the constant theme of office gossip alleging sexual liaisons between Osorio, the owners, and various rap artists. Further enlivening the testimony, Osorio’s attorney, Kenneth Thompson, advised the judge during the trial that one of the Source’s owners shouted “Coward! Chump! Uncle Tom!", to him as Thomppson went to the bathroom during a recess. This was the same owner that had his own rap album promoted with a cartoon depicting him holding the bloody and severed head of white rapper Eminem, although his partner said that such displays were all part of the hip hop culture and being a hip hop artist.
It’s cases like these that keep Rod and me in employment law – as Don Imus frequently says, “you just can’t make this stuff up”.