SEATTLE: Port CEO Ted Fick placed two port employees on paid administrative leave after a racial discrimination lawsuit revealed port staffers trading offensive, racially-charged language.
This week, the Port of Seattle announced that it is pursuing an internal investigation regarding e-mails exchanged between two port staffers that contained racially charged insults. One set of e-mails provided to The Stranger appear to show the airport’s dining and retail manager calling a black business owner a “thug.”
On Monday, Port CEO Ted Fick placed two employees on paid administrative leave, but would not confirm whether the employees were the two in question.
The emails were obtained as part of the discovery process of a racial discrimination lawsuit filed by three minority-owned airport concession businesses against the Port of Seattle last fall. The lawsuit alleges that the port relegated those businesses to remote locations with low foot-traffic, charged them higher rent than white-owned businesses, and signed leases with them that had terms that were less favorable than those with white business owners.
An excerpt of the e-mails between port staffer Elaine Lincoln and Deanna Zachrisson, currently the airport’s business manager for dining and retail. An excerpt of the e-mails between port staffer Elaine Lincoln and Deanna Zachrisson, currently the airport’s business manager for dining and retail.
SeaTac Bar Group is one of the companies suing the port under the Civil Rights Act. The company, which is owned by Rod O’Neal and Jerry Whitsett, operates Africa Lounge and the Mountain Room Bar on Concourse A. The lawsuit, which claims that the port has plans to terminate contracts with all of the businesses in Concourse A, alleges that the port told SeaTac Bar Group it wanted to turn Africa Lounge into a shoe-shine parlor and barbershop.
