Chickasaw County Courthouse in Houston, Miss. – Photo: Jerrye & Roy Klotz, MD.
A former county corrections officer in Mississippi is suing her employer, alleging that she was fired because she is transgender.
Elise Hebert, a prison guard in Chickasaw County, is seeking back wages and damages for sexual harassment that she claims she was subjected to while on the job.
In her lawsuit, Hebert claims that she was harassed after her fellow officers at the county jail learned of her gender identity, reports NBC affiliate WTVA.
After being hired, Hebert claims that Brand Huffman, the warden, confronted her and asked about her past. He pulled her into an office with George Dallas, the chief of security at the prison, making Hebert feel embarrassed, offended, and uncomfortable at being the only female in the room.
Hebert asked that her transgender status be kept confidential, but it became apparent that her gender identity was not only widely known, but was being discussed among her co-workers and even some inmates.
Hebert claims she was subjected to derogatory and humiliating statements concerning her sexuality and gender at work, was never paid on time, leaving her at times without enough money to fill her gas tank so she could get to work, and was targeted by other officers and superiors, who lodged complaints about her behavior on the job, even though it was no different from that of her male co-workers.
She claims she was targeted because her behavior did not conform to stereotypes about how women are supposed to behave — which would be considered a form of sex-based discrimination.
Hebert says she complained to her superiors, as well as to Sheriff James Meyers, about her treatment, but no action was ever taken. Due to the complaints against her, she was eventually fired.
Hebert’s attorney, Lisa Bennett, told WTVA she has not received a response from the county in reaction to the lawsuit. The county has by Nov. 30 to respond.
A New York City subway rider was slashed in the face earlier this month by an unidentified assailant who took offense to him kissing his transgender partner. The attack occurred around 7:50 p.m. on January 10 aboard a southbound No. 6 train as it traveled through Manhattan.
According to police, the 28-year-old victim was kissing his partner when the suspect began shouting anti-gay slurs. The verbal abuse quickly escalated into a physical confrontation. During the argument, the suspect struck the victim with a sharp object, causing a deep laceration on the right side of his face, according to New York CW affiliate WPIX.
In late November, the University of Oklahoma placed Mel Curth on administrative leave after the transgender graduate teaching assistant gave a student a zero on an essay about gender roles.
The essay cited the Bible to defend traditional gender roles and described transgender people as "demonic." Curth and the course's instructor, Megan Waldron, said the paper failed to meet basic academic standards due to a lack of empirical evidence. Both noted that the paper cited no scholarly sources and failed to offer an evidence-based critique of the assigned article, which argued that children who do not conform to rigid gender stereotypes are more likely to face bullying and negative mental health outcomes.
A transgender woman has filed a lawsuit against hotel giant Hilton, alleging that she was assaulted by a security guard at the Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre while she was a registered guest.
According to the complaint, filed in the 192nd Civil District Court in Dallas County, Kimberly Barnett, an Afro-Latina transgender woman from Nebraska, was staying at the hotel in late June while attending Dallas Pride Weekend and other LGBTQ events.
Barnett returned to the Hilton Dallas Lincoln Centre around 3:45 a.m. on June 24 and attempted to "valet her vehicle," according to the lawsuit.
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A former county corrections officer in Mississippi is suing her employer, alleging that she was fired because she is transgender.
Elise Hebert, a prison guard in Chickasaw County, is seeking back wages and damages for sexual harassment that she claims she was subjected to while on the job.
In her lawsuit, Hebert claims that she was harassed after her fellow officers at the county jail learned of her gender identity, reports NBC affiliate WTVA.
After being hired, Hebert claims that Brand Huffman, the warden, confronted her and asked about her past. He pulled her into an office with George Dallas, the chief of security at the prison, making Hebert feel embarrassed, offended, and uncomfortable at being the only female in the room.
Hebert asked that her transgender status be kept confidential, but it became apparent that her gender identity was not only widely known, but was being discussed among her co-workers and even some inmates.
Hebert claims she was subjected to derogatory and humiliating statements concerning her sexuality and gender at work, was never paid on time, leaving her at times without enough money to fill her gas tank so she could get to work, and was targeted by other officers and superiors, who lodged complaints about her behavior on the job, even though it was no different from that of her male co-workers.
She claims she was targeted because her behavior did not conform to stereotypes about how women are supposed to behave — which would be considered a form of sex-based discrimination.
Hebert says she complained to her superiors, as well as to Sheriff James Meyers, about her treatment, but no action was ever taken. Due to the complaints against her, she was eventually fired.
Hebert’s attorney, Lisa Bennett, told WTVA she has not received a response from the county in reaction to the lawsuit. The county has by Nov. 30 to respond.
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