A University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire employee has filed a lawsuit against the school alleging she was forced to resign from a campus diversity office because of her race.
Rochelle Hoffman, a white woman who reportedly now works as a senior academic advising coordinator at the university, filed the federal lawsuit on Dec. 14.
Her lawsuit claims that when she was promoted to interim director of the school's Multicultural Student Services office, students complained to the school's former vice chancellor for Equity, Diversity and Inclusion and Student Affairs. school, Olga Diaz, that a white woman was not suitable for her. position, according to the New York Post.
“You hired a white woman as interim director?” bellowed an angry student.
“Do you personally believe that white staff can do as effective a job as a person of color, within a space for people of color?” asked another student.
University of Wisconsin sued for allegedly demoting diversity staff member for being 'white' https://t.co/4P0s0UUjWS pic.twitter.com/AJg0dWmckI
— New York Post (@nypost) December 22, 2023
The lawsuit states, “The affinity model that had been used at the University of Wisconsin-Eau Claire was based on the idea that in order for a student to be well served, they had to be assigned a coordinator of the same ethnic background and that a the white person could not adequately support a student of color.”
“Despite Hoffman's exceptional qualifications … students, faculty, and staff opposed her appointment as MSS interim principal simply because she was white. The issue was solely Hoffman's identity as white; the criticism was about their race and color, not their qualifications,” he continues.
According to Wisconsin Public Radio, the backlash created a hostile work environment in which Hoffman was pressured to resign from her position and move to another position, apparently suitable for a white woman.
The lawsuit “also alleges that she was stripped of her teaching role and faced retaliation after she filed a complaint with the university,” WPR notes.
According to the lawsuit, Hoffman originally worked for the school's Blugold Beginnings office for six years before being promoted.
“The office served students described as first-generation, low-income, and underrepresented college students,” WPR notes.
It appears this is not Hoffman's first complaint.
“In November 2022, she filed a complaint with the State of Wisconsin Division of Equal Rights within the Department of Workforce Development after UW System third-party investigators disagreed with her affirmations [of harassment]”, according to WPR.
“Investigators said Hoffman's claim of being demoted from her interim position was unfounded. They said Diaz “never initiated or requested” her title change to interim director of Multicultural Student Services through of campus human resources, “which would have required additional approvals beyond Diaz to take place,” notes WPR.
The UW-Eau Claire employee's lawsuit “claims comments and concerns from some faculty members that the 'optics' of a white woman replacing former DEI leaders who were Asian and black created a work environment hostile” which led to her being demoted. https://t.co/G96R5cM0iu
— Patrick McIlheran (@PaddyMacMke) December 18, 2023
Investigators also alleged that what students and faculty members had said about her and her race did not “provide evidence of a pattern of discrimination.”
Hoffman has also tried to make his case to state Sen. Patrick Testin, a Republican.
“I think it's important for good educators to shine a light on some of the blatant acts of racial discrimination against whites that are occurring on UW campuses and that contribute to the current hostile environment around the UW system,” she wrote in an email to him.
“This experience lasted over 10 months and irrevocably damaged my career. Periodically there are great educators who are told they should not occupy a multicultural space, to check their white privilege, they are passed over for jobs for an outside candidate of color and are reminded that they are “inherently racist” because they are white.” she added.
Testin later forwarded the email to Assembly Speaker Robin Vos, a Republican.
The following month, Vos said during the Republican Party of Wisconsin's state convention that DEI stands for “division, exclusion and indoctrination” and that it is “the single most important issue that we face as a people, as a nation, and really the humanity”. .”
Then, in September of this year, Vos “announced he would block previously approved raises for about 34,000 UW employees until administrators eliminated DEI programs and staff,” WPR notes.
He reportedly followed through on the threat in November, prompting the UW Board of Regents to compromise and agree to an agreement to place new limits on DEI staff positions and programs.
In response to word of Hoffman's lawsuit, users of the social media platform X noted that this kind of racism is quickly becoming the norm on the left.
Look at:
Holy hell! DEI is a racist cult
— Dylanmdp (@DylanLuckyM) December 22, 2023
Leftists are virulent racists and anti-Semites.
— Brian Doherty (@BDOH) December 22, 2023
Leftists preach about equality, but in practice, they are the LAST to do it, hypocrites.
— D-Fens (@TheRealPest) December 22, 2023
The new word of the left
it's “diversity”. This is the new modern form of pure anti-white discrimination, as simple as, in court, diversity is still discrimination!– Grumpy grandpa! (@Am_Can_1) December 22, 2023
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