16 Trial Lawyer • Spring 2024 Winding Road Continued from p 15 The school took no corrective actions other than to isolate the child further at the expense of their mental health. Under claims filed under the federal equal protection clause, 42 USC §1983, Title IX, and ORS 659.850 (differential treatment on the basis of sex and sexual orientation), the school district avoided a claim for punitive damages and settled the case. • Discrimination on the basis of gender and gender identity have also been addressed in various other cases. In the Matter of Blachana, LLC, Opinion and Order Case No. 25-13 (2013) (Club owner fined for unlawfully discriminating against and seeking to exclude the Rose City T-Girls, a social club of persons who identify as “transfeminine individuals” including crossdressers and “pre-op, post-op and non-op transgender women”79); Pelusi v. Oregon Dept. of Human Svcs. (Julie D. Reading and Richard Myers filed this 2023 complaint alleging claims of hostile work environment and discrimination responsive to plaintiff transitioning to female);80 Jansen v. Deschutes County (2020) (Attorneys Christina Stephenson and Whitney Stark settled claims of gender discrimination and retaliation against the Deschutes County sheriff on behalf of a female deputy);81 and Montgomery v. State (2019) (Charese Rohny filed this action on behalf of interns working with the Legislature at the time it was under fire for sexual harassment).82 Conclusion While the battle for a truly diverse, equitable and inclusive society rages on, the DEI concept will continue to be aspirational. True inclusion, for example, requires not only giving people from diverse backgrounds a seat at the table, but embracing their identity however it authentically presents as they sit there. Until that happens, diversity and equitable treatment is merely tokenism or something obtained through the force of law or policy. A truly diverse, equitable and inclusive society simply cannot happen when we continue to dole out rewards primarily to those who look and sound more white, more male, more straight, less ethnic, less poor or less outside of the dominant paradigm. No amount of DEI workplace trainings, CLEs or mission statements will alter that. But, we can keep trying. We can aspire. Lisa T. Hunt is a diversity and inclusion certified practitioner specializing in appeals and briefing support for trial attorneys. Recent practice areas include remedy clause challenges, UM/UIM coverage, personal and business injury, dram shop statutes, discovery disputes and privilege, Oregon’s wage and hour law, and product and premises liability. She can be reached at the Law Office of Lisa T. Hunt, LLC, 503515-8501 or lthunt@lthuntlaw.com. 1 https://insights.grcglobalgroup.com/the-historyand-growth-of-the-diversity-equity-and-inclusion-profession/ https://sites.lsa.umich.edu/leadership-institute/2021/06/25/the-history-of-diversity-inhigher-education-ali-series-part-i/ 2 Id.; https://academyhealth.org/sites/default/files/ publication/%5Bfield_ date%3Acustom%3AY%5D-%5Bfield_ date%3Acustom%3Am%5D/deiglossary_ nov_2021_1.pdf 3 https://www.si.edu/spotlight/1963-march-onwashington 4 https://nmaahc.si.edu/bayard-rustin 5 https://www.si.edu/spotlight/1963-march-onwashington 6 Id. 7 https://www.dol.gov/agencies/oasam/civil-rightscenter/statutes/civil-rights-act-of1964#:~:text=The%20Civil%20Rights%20 Act%20of%201964%20prohibits%20discrimination%20on%20the,hiring%2C%20 promoting%2C%20and%20firing 8 Id. 9 https://www.brennancenter.org/our-work/research-reports/equal-rights-amendment-explained 10 Id. 11 https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/why 12 https://www.equalrightsamendment.org/era-ratification-map 13 https://womenshistory.si.edu/spotlight/era
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