A transgender woman has filed a lawsuit against Illinois Governor J.B. Pritzker’s campaign, accusing them of a Title VII violation “for discrimination based on sex.”
Emma Todd worked on the JB For Governor campaign from August 2017 to March 2018 as a field organizer. She says she loved her job and received “good evaluations and feedback” from her supervisors until February of 2018, when a new supervisor was hired.
That supervisor, Raynal Sands, allegedly “viewed transgender identity as a sexual fetish, asked about transgender sexual habits in a prurient manner and stated that Ms. Todd was ‘the reason people don’t like transgender people’,” according to the lawsuit.
She was fired at the end of March.
A spokesperson for the Pritzker campaign, Quentin Fulks, says the claims are unfounded, and that Todd was fired with good reason.
“She had a number of behavioral issues that she was reprimanded for throughout the course of the campaign,” he said.
Todd insists her co-workers can back up her claims, and wants to take the case to court, both to seek monetary damages and to force the Democratic campaign to train staff in equal employment regulations for the future.
“I worked hard on this campaign and loved my job,” Todd said. “I was blindsided by my termination.
“I wholeheartedly supported and voted for Governor JB Pritzker and Lt. Governor Juliana Stratton…this lawsuit does not change my support for these highly qualified people. I am bringing this lawsuit because transgender people, like all Americans, deserve the same chance to earn a living, free from distraction.”
