A Black elementary school principal in Michigan is taking her school district and the superintendent to civil court, alleging that the district leader has made racist remarks and cultivated a racially hostile work environment against Black employees.
Pleasantview Elementary School Principal Falicia Moreland-Trice brought the federal lawsuit against Eastpointe Community Schools and its superintendent Christina Gibson.
Atlanta Black Star obtained the complaint that accuses Gibson of making racist comments and displaying a pattern of discriminatory behavior toward Black district employees.
According to the suit, Gibson admitted to using the N-word in front of Black school district employees, didn’t allow Black principals to sit together at district meetings when white school leaders could sit where they’d like, and talked down to Black female employees.
Moreland-Trice also listed one specific instance from July 2024 when she was with the Gibson at a training session and heard her state that Black people would be more inclined to shop at Whole Foods if the store offered “chitterlings and greens.”
The principal also claimed that Gibson said her school “would be treated differently” than another elementary school in the district that was run by a white principal.
At one point, Moreland-Trice made a request to Gibson to relocate some of her students to that other school due to overcrowding and lack of seating. The request sought to relocate a portion of Pleasantview Elementary’s 320 students to Bellview Elementary where only 205 students were enrolled.
Gibson refused, according to the suit, and told Moreland-Trice “your kids can sit on the floor.” Gibson also moved teachers from Pleasantview to Bellview, purchased seating for Bellview’s classrooms, and approved more resources for Bellview’s use.
Because Pleasantview’s teachers were relocated, Moreland-Trice was forced to start teaching multiple classes in addition to performing her principal duties, the suit states.
Moreland-Trice also detailed a separate instance in which she prohibited a parent from attending a Pleasantview “moving-up” ceremony after the parent brought a handgun to school and was arrested for brandishing a firearm.
Gibson overruled Moreland-Trice’s decision and invited the parent and family members to the ceremony. In fear for her life, Moreland-Trice refused to attend, but Gibson forced her to show up anyway, the lawsuit states, which led to a violent encounter in which the parent physically and verbally assaulted Moreland-Trice.
Gibson is also accused of withholding COVID-19 hazard pay from Moreland-Trice even though she approved the payment for white school administrators who also worked in person during the pandemic. Moreland-Trice also claimed that Gibson threatened to fire her if she spoke about racism at district meetings.
Moreland-Trice is the fifth Eastpointe Community Schools employee to file a racial discrimination suit against Gibson in the last two years.
According to Candgnews.com, four former Black district employees, including another principal, a security administrator, and a special education teacher all filed separate federal complaints in 2023 and 2024, alleging Gibson has displayed a pattern of retaliation and racial discrimination.
At a September 2024 board meeting, the former special education teacher called Gibson “racist, inept and corrupt” and said she runs the district “like her own personal crime family.”
The district has denied all the allegations listed in those lawsuits.
As for Moreland-Trice’s complaint, Eastpointe Community Schools stated it’s unable to comment on pending litigation at this time, Macomb Daily reported.
“We are continuing to work with district legal representation to assess these claims and are prepared to defend against these allegations vigorously as we continue our work to serve and educate the children in our community,” the district stated.
Moreland-Trice seeks a jury trial to decide compensatory damages in the case.
