The pattern I see most often goes like this: an employee experiences race-based discrimination or a racially hostile work environment. They do what they’re supposed to do — they report it in writing to HR, to a supervisor, or to their company’s ethics hotline. And within weeks or a few months of making that report, they’re terminated, demoted, disciplined for something minor, or pushed out.

That fact pattern — a written complaint followed closely by an adverse action — is one of the most winnable race discrimination retaliation cases in Michigan. If it matches yours, we should talk.

I’m Warren Astbury. I’m a Harvard Law graduate (2009), I’ve tried more than 50 cases to verdict, and I represent Michigan employees in race discrimination, hostile work environment, and retaliation cases under Title VII of the Civil Rights Act, 42 U.S.C. § 1981, and Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act.

Schedule a Free Case Evaluation → Or call 814-821-1140

The three-question intake filter for race retaliation cases

1. You experienced race-based discrimination, harassment, or a racially hostile work environment — or you witnessed it happening to someone else and spoke up.

2. You reported it — ideally in writing, to HR, a supervisor, an ethics hotline, the EEOC, or the Michigan Department of Civil Rights.

3. You were fired, demoted, disciplined, or forced to resign within a tight time window after the report. The shorter the gap, the stronger the case. Two months or less is typically very compelling.

If those three are true, call 814-821-1140 or request a free case evaluation →.

The laws that protect you

Three different laws prohibit race discrimination and retaliation at work. They often apply at the same time, and we typically plead under all three.

Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 — the federal statute. Applies to employers with 15 or more employees. Covers race, color, religion, sex, and national origin discrimination, plus retaliation for opposing those practices.

42 U.S.C. § 1981 — a Reconstruction-era federal civil rights statute that prohibits race discrimination in contracts, including employment contracts. Applies to employers of any size and has a longer statute of limitations (four years in many cases) than Title VII.

Michigan’s Elliott-Larsen Civil Rights Act (ELCRA) — the state statute. Applies to employers with one or more employees — much broader coverage than Title VII. Covers race, color, national origin, sex, age, height, weight, marital status, and other characteristics.

If your employer is too small for Title VII, Section 1981 or ELCRA likely still applies.

What “race discrimination” actually covers (it’s broader than you think)

The EEOC recognizes seven categories of race discrimination. Your situation probably fits into at least one.

1. Ancestry. Race and national origin often overlap. Discrimination against a Japanese American employee may be because of her Asian ancestry, her Japanese national origin, or both — and may support claims under either or both theories.

2. Physical characteristics. Skin color, hair, facial features, and other physical traits tied to race. Courts have recognized that policies banning natural hair textures (Afros in particular) may violate Title VII.

3. Race-linked illness. Sickle cell anemia is more common in people of African descent; certain diabetes rates are higher in Native Hawaiian communities. An employer policy that disproportionately affects employees with race-linked health conditions has to be justified by generally accepted medical criteria.

4. Culture. Names, clothing, grooming, accents, and manner of speech. Firing or passing over an employee because they have a “Hispanic name,” an “Asian accent,” or “dress Black” violates Title VII unless the employer can prove those characteristics materially interfere with the job.

5. Perception. If your employer perceives you as a racial minority and discriminates based on that perception, you have a claim — even if the perception is wrong. A mixed-race employee who identifies as white but is perceived and treated as Black can sue for race discrimination.

6. Association. Interracial marriages, multiracial children, interracial friendships. Discriminating against a white employee because her husband is Black, or because she speaks up for her Black coworkers, violates Title VII.

7. Subgroup (“race plus”). Employers sometimes argue they can’t have discriminated because they treat some members of your racial group well. Courts have rejected that defense when the discrimination targets a subgroup — for example, Black women specifically, or Black Christians specifically, rather than all Black employees.

How race discrimination is actually proven

Employers rarely admit race was the reason. Almost every race case is proven circumstantially, through a three-step burden-shifting framework the Supreme Court laid out in McDonnell Douglas Corp. v. Green in 1973.

Step 1 — You establish a prima facie case by showing four things: – You were qualified for the position; – You suffered an adverse action (usually termination, but also demotion, failure to promote, failure to hire, or material changes to the terms and conditions of your job); – You are a member of a racial minority (or, for reverse-discrimination claims, you’re a member of a majority group); and – The adverse action happened under circumstances that support a reasonable inference race played a role.

Step 2 — The employer articulates a “legitimate, nondiscriminatory reason” for the action. This is a relatively low bar for the employer — they just have to produce evidence of a plausible non-racial reason. Common ones: poor performance, attendance, insubordination, or violation of company policy.

Step 3 — You prove the employer’s stated reason is pretext — a cover story, not the real reason. This is where the case is won or lost. Common ways to prove pretext include:

The employer’s stated reason is false, unsupported by documentation, or contradicted by the evidence
The employer gave inconsistent or shifting explanations for the termination
The stated reason is weak, implausible, or doesn’t hold up under scrutiny
The employer failed to follow its own policies or procedures when terminating you
Comparator evidence: non-minority employees engaged in similar or worse conduct without being fired
The employer’s explanation is revisionist history — your performance reviews before the complaint were good, and the “performance problems” only surfaced after
Decisionmakers used race-coded or discriminatory statements
You were excluded from meetings or communication right before the termination

Building out pretext evidence is most of the work in a race discrimination case. It’s labor-intensive, which is one reason I screen hard at intake — I want cases where the pretext evidence will hold up.

Circumstantial evidence is not “weaker” than direct evidence

A common misconception — circumstantial evidence (the McDonnell Douglas pattern above) carries the same legal weight as direct evidence. The Supreme Court has been explicit: “Circumstantial evidence is not only sufficient, but may also be more certain, satisfying, and persuasive than direct evidence.” Desert Palace, Inc. v. Costa, 539 U.S. 90, 100 (2003).

Racially hostile work environment claims

If you didn’t lose your job but experienced persistent racial harassment, you may have a hostile work environment claim. Two requirements:

The conduct must be unwelcome; and
The conduct must be severe or pervasive enough to alter the terms and conditions of your employment — judged both subjectively (you found it hostile) and objectively (a reasonable person in your position would find it hostile).

The currency metaphor — how “severe or pervasive” actually works

Think of proving a hostile work environment like making a dollar. You can make it with:

100 pennies — many low-severity incidents that happen often
10 dimes — somewhat more severe incidents, slightly less frequent
4 quarters — moderately severe incidents, occasional
1 dollar bill — a single extremely severe incident (a displayed noose, an unambiguous racial epithet, a physical threat, a racial comparison to an animal, a favorable reference to the Klan)

You don’t need all of these. You need enough total weight — in any combination of severity and frequency — to cross the line. Daily or weekly incidents of racially charged conduct almost always qualify. Two or three mild incidents over several years almost never do.

What counts as potentially actionable conduct?

The EEOC recognizes a non-exhaustive list: offensive jokes, racial slurs, racial epithets or name-calling, physical assaults, threats or intimidation, ridicule or mockery, racial insults, offensive objects or pictures in the workplace, and conduct that interferes with work performance. Incidents of racial harassment directed at other employees can also contribute — you don’t have to be the direct target.

Damages in a race case

The damages you can recover depend on which statutes your case is brought under. Typical recoveries include:

Back pay and front pay — lost wages and benefits from termination through trial and beyond
Compensatory damages — emotional pain, mental anguish, humiliation, injury to reputation, and the other EEOC-recognized harms
Punitive damages — available for willful or reckless conduct (subject to federal caps under Title VII, but uncapped under Section 1981)
Attorney’s fees and costs — paid by the employer if you prevail

Section 1981 matters here: because its punitive damages are uncapped, we often plead Section 1981 alongside Title VII to preserve full punitive recovery.

For a detailed walkthrough of how these damages are calculated, see the Wrongful Termination hub →.

Representative race case patterns

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. Each case is different. The following are representative fact patterns from cases I’ve handled.

High-six-figure settlement in a single-plaintiff race discrimination, harassment, and retaliation case involving an employee who was threatened with a noose — a case covered by national media.
Mid-six-figure settlement against one of Michigan’s largest employers for forcing an employee to resign after he complained about race discrimination.
Six-figure settlement in a race discrimination, harassment, and retaliation case where an employee was compelled to resign after reporting the sighting of a noose at work.

See more representative case frameworks on the Results page →.

Frequently asked questions

My employer has a diverse workforce. Doesn’t that prove they don’t discriminate?

No. Courts have rejected the argument that hiring some members of a racial group insulates an employer from discrimination claims by others. This is the “subgroup” or “race-plus” theory above — an employer can discriminate against a specific subset (say, Black women, or Black employees in one department) without discriminating against all Black employees. A diverse headcount is not a defense.

I don’t have direct proof that race was the reason. Do I still have a case?

Probably yes. Most winning race cases are built on circumstantial evidence — the McDonnell Douglas framework above. Direct evidence (a supervisor saying “I fired you because you’re Black”) is rare. Comparator evidence, shifting rationales, and pretext are where most cases are actually won.

I’m white and I was fired in what felt like reverse discrimination. Do I have a claim?

Potentially. Title VII and Section 1981 protect everyone from race discrimination, regardless of race. You’d need to meet the same elements as any other plaintiff, but the law doesn’t bar the claim.

How long do I have to file a race discrimination claim?

Under Title VII, you generally must file a charge with the EEOC within 300 days of the discriminatory act in Michigan. After the EEOC issues a Notice of Right to Sue, you have 90 days to sue. Section 1981 generally has a four-year statute of limitations for claims arising under the 1991 amendments, and ELCRA has a three-year statute of limitations. The multiple statutes mean deadlines can vary depending on the theory. Don’t rely on this page to calculate yours — call and we’ll walk through it.

I experienced harassment from a customer or a contractor, not a coworker. Am I out of luck?

No. Employers can be liable for racial harassment by non-employees — customers, clients, vendors, contractors — if the employer knew about it and failed to stop it.

Ready to talk?

If you experienced race discrimination, reported it, and were terminated or retaliated against, call 814-821-1140 or request a free case evaluation →. Free consultation, 15–30 minutes, honest answer at the end.

Astbury Law, PLLC 607 Shelby Street, 7th Floor, #1115 Detroit, MI 48226 814-821-1140 · warren@astburylaw.com

Past results do not guarantee future outcomes. The information on this page is for general educational purposes and is not legal advice. No attorney-client relationship is created by reading this page or submitting a form.