Four men won a race discrimination lawsuit against a Toyota dealership in Gladstone, Oregon. The verdict for $19 million was handed down by a federal jury this week.
In 2006, Kent Paul, Marcus Arnold, Carlos Barfield and Jahaeel Hardy filed a lawsuit against Asbury Automotive Group, which owned Thomason Toyota during their employment. The suit claimed that they lost car deals because they were black.
Witnesses who testified on behalf of the four former salesmen stated that various employees:
- Used racial epithets
- Steered customers to white salespeople
- Described themselves as “rednecks”
- Talked about family members who “don’t like blacks” and “used to burn crosses”
Dealership management was accused of failing to stop the racist comments.
The jury ruled that the men were victims of racism and awarded them monetary damages. This is not the first verdict against Thomason Auto Group. In 2001, 11 former employees won more than $2 million for various forms of harassment