Keith Henry told KHOU 11 News he plans on filing a lawsuit against the City of Hoschton, Ga., claiming its mayor didn’t hire him because he is black.
HOSCHTON, Ga. — A Houston man says he was not considered for a job because of his race.
Keith Henry told KHOU 11 News he plans on filing a lawsuit against the City of Hoschton, Ga., claiming its mayor didn’t hire him because he is black.
“Unfortunately, I wasn’t astonished at all,” Henry said.
The 34-year-old inquired about the City Administrator position in February and completed an interview in March according to city emails obtained by KHOU sister-station 11Alive in Atlanta.
Henry has a master’s degree in public administration and is currently working on his doctorate.
“I have over a decade of public administration experience. I’ve worked in major cities dealing with large budgets,” he said.
In an email obtained by 11Alive, a city council member went on record saying that she heard Hoschton Mayor Theresa Kenerly talk about Henry, saying, “She proceeded to tell me that the candidate was real good, but he was black, and we don’t have a big black population, and she just didn’t think Hoschton was ready for that.”
“We as a person of color. We certainly have to be objective. Nonetheless, this is the reality you face,” Henry said.
Natalie Woodward is Henry’s attorney. She said her client was completely qualified and capable to do the job and should have been given the same opportunity as everyone else who was a finalist for the job.
“From all of the evidence and all of the reporting so far, the only reason, the only reason his resume was pulled from the four finalists was because he was black,” Woodward said.
Hoschton councilmember Jim Cleveland said he’s considering resigning after he defended the mayor, saying he’s against interracial marriage due to his Christian beliefs. Henry told KHOU he felt the need to file a lawsuit because job discrimination isn’t an isolated issue.
“If I didn’t take action, If I didn’t speak out, then those inequalities will continue, and to me, I thought, here’s my platform…let me be that voice,” Henry said.