A White Teacher in California is Suing His Union Because He Says They Kept Him From Being a Leader Because He is White

A history teacher from California who is white said that a teachers union was unfairly treating him because of the color of his skin and called the action “disgusting.”

Isaac Newman, a teacher in the Elk Grove School District, sued his local National Education Association branch in federal court on Friday, saying that they violated his Title VII civil rights. The lawsuit said that the Elk Grove Education Association created a board spot that could only be filled by people of color, which meant that Newman wasn’t qualified.

In an interview with Fox News Digital, he said, “It’s disgusting, which is why I’m suing.”

He talked about the suit and said, “My union kept me from being a leader just because of the color of my skin.” Because of my race, I’m not allowed to run for a leadership post. I’m taking them to court because this kind of race litmus test is against the law and not American.

The suit says that in 2023, the Elk Grove Education Association voted to add a “BIPOC At-Large” seat to its executive board. This seat could only be held by someone who “self-identifies” as “African American (Black), Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian, Pacific Islander, Latino (including Puerto Rican), Asian, Arab, or Middle Eastern.”

The lawsuit was filed by The Fairness Center, a law firm that helps people who have been hurt by public sector union officials. It says that the plaintiff, Isaac Newman, is a white EGEA member who wants to run for union office to fight what he sees as the District’s recent adoption of what he thinks are aggressive and unnecessary Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) policies.

“Declare the BIPOC Position unlawful” was what the lawsuit asked the court to do. It also said that the union should not be able to make any more jobs like this where race is a factor in any way.

Newman said that both the claimed discrimination and the fact that critical race theory is so common in culture were “frightening.”

“I’m actually really frightened for my children,” said he, “when we look to a future where people are being taught [critical race theory].”

Newman thinks that DEI philosophy spreads hateful messages about people based on the color of their skin instead of their skills and knowledge.

“The message there is that as a White teacher in a district that is very diverse, my students can’t learn from me,” he stated. “It’s abhorrent, and it’s flatly wrong.”

Newman told Fox News Digital that he chose to run for an executive seat to challenge the status quo because he didn’t agree with the union’s “aggressive” DEI agendas in the district.

“I’m looking to see my district and union back away from this fantastically toxic ideology, back away from DEI and embrace merit and individuality,” said he. “I’m hoping to see that other teachers, other people in similar organizations, will stand up.”

Newman said he wasn’t the only one who didn’t like DEI in schools.

“Most people who think like me are unwilling to speak up,” he told me. “There are a lot of teachers [who are silent], and it’s not really a conservative or liberal thing.”

“There are a lot of teachers who recognize that meritocracy, colorblindness are at the core of good teaching,” he said. It’s shocking that in these DEI trainings, they call out racism and the idea that everyone is equal based on their abilities. Of course, if you’re set on that, you’ll have disagreements and average results.

Fox News Digital tried to get the Elk Grove union to say something.

“Laws against racial discrimination don’t give teachers’ unions a pass,” said Nathan McGrath, president and general counsel of the Fairness Center. “The Civil Rights Act explicitly forbids unions from discriminating based on race, color, religion, sex or national origin and from segregating members based on these attributes.”