Straight Sues “Discriminating” Gays
There’s a battle brewing in Los Angeles. Former AIDS/LifeCycle organizer Jeffrey Shapiro filed a discrimination lawsuit against the San Francisco AIDS Foundation and LA’s Gay and Lesbian Community Center after being fired “for being straight”.
LA’s CBS affiliate reports:
According to the lawsuit, Shapiro was hired in March and received praise for his work, which generated a record $11 million compared to $8 million the previous year.But he claims LAGLC and SFAF leaders held a meeting with Shapiro in June and fired him, telling him that “everybody liked him as a person, but they needed somebody who better fit into the culture.”
He said that when he asked for a clarification, a LAGLC director told him “things like this happen and that they made a mistake to think this could work.”
The bosses weren’t entirely heartless, he says: they gave him two weeks wage. Now Shapiro’s seeking unspecified damages. He’s also asked for an injunction prohibiting the activists from breaking another breeder’s heart. If Shapiro’s telling the truth, his bosses should be ashamed of themselves.
Aren’t we the ones always saying that AIDS isn’t just a gay disease? If this is true, I hope he wins big!!
As a participant in AIDS LifeCycle, I can say this much… the 11 million was not a victory Jeff can claim any credit for. By the time he was brought in, this year’s event was already organized and the fundraising was already well underway. During the week of the event, Jeff was an observer shadowing the work of Chris Cole, the outgoing director. I can’t speak at all to the details of his employment or why he no longer works with the group, but I can say that he had NOTHING to do with the 11 million dollars raised.