Xavier Montgomery, a former employee of the Vernon Parish School Board, has filed a lawsuit alleging racial discrimination and retaliation by his employer. The complaint was filed on September 23, 2024, in the United States District Court for the Western District of Louisiana against the Vernon Parish School Board.
Montgomery, who began working as a math teacher and head basketball coach for seventh and eighth graders on August 5, 2021, claims he faced racial discrimination and harassment during his tenure. According to the complaint, Montgomery alleges that he was subjected to differential treatment compared to his white colleagues. Despite having no disciplinary actions in his personnel file, Montgomery asserts that he faced pressure from school officials to reinstate a student named Kaleb Obanion to the basketball team with preferential treatment. This pressure allegedly came from both Principal Jerome Henson and Randy Martin, a school board member and uncle of the student.
Montgomery contends that his refusal to comply with these demands led to adverse employment actions against him. He claims that unlike his white counterparts—such as football coach Jared Underwood and baseball coach Justin Lansdale—he was not allowed to make independent decisions regarding team selection without fear of termination. The complaint further states that Montgomery's objections were met with accusations of racism by Principal Henson.
The lawsuit accuses the Vernon Parish School Board of violating 42 U.S.C. § 1981 by subjecting Montgomery to race-based discrimination and creating a hostile work environment. Additionally, it alleges retaliation against Montgomery for opposing discriminatory practices and reporting harassment. As a result of these actions, Montgomery claims he was transferred to another school with lesser pay and eventually faced constructive termination when his contract was not renewed on May 19, 2022.
Montgomery is seeking various forms of relief from the court, including back pay, future compensation, reinstatement with promotions or equivalent positions, damages for emotional distress and mental anguish, compensatory damages, punitive damages for willful misconduct by the defendant, prejudgment interest, attorney's fees, costs associated with litigation, and any other relief deemed appropriate by the court.
The case is being handled by attorney Natalie Blackman representing Xavier Montgomery. The case ID is 2:24-cv-1295.