Standing in the Gap: A Profile of Employment Discrimination Plaintiffs

Abstract

Vickie Dugan has a handmade sign posted in her office at Porterville College, a community college north of Bakersfield, California. The sign lists five rules for happiness. It reads: your heart from hatred. Free your mind from worries. Live simply. Give more. Expect less. Vickie lives by these rules. She finds pleasure in simple things—hiking with her dogs Tippy and Nikka, savoring a locally grown orange, and preparing Christmas gifts for co-workers at the College. As this professor and head softball coach sits on the deck of her rustic home overlooking the Sierra Nevada foothills, she reflects on her life, breathes deeply, and says, I like peace. Americans think they have employment discrimination plaintiffs all figured out: Generally, individuals who sue their employers alleging gender or race discrimination are protestors of the worst kind—militant protestors. They complain about unfairness, when instead they should be using their energy to generate work that will propel them to the positions they desire. No one likes whiners, and plaintiffs are worse than most because they are willing, perhaps eager, to whine publicly. Plaintiffs' worst trait, though, is that they are motivated by money. They seek compensation for alleged acts of unfairness.