Dwyane Wade has defended wife Gabrielle Union following the discrimination complaint she filed on Thursday after her firing from NBCUniversal’s America’s Got Talent.
After NBC called Union’s accusations “categorically untrue,” the former NBA star took to social media to share his thoughts on the ordeal.
“Y’all have deemed her a liar after months of trying to inform y’all of the issues in the work place and also make sure other employees of colour that comes after her won’t have the same experiences,” he tweeted.
“So instead of making sure your work environment is a a better place for everyone. Y’all have decided that she what? Made it all up because she lost a job? She’s a black women (sic) in Hollywood she has lost out on many jobs.”
The father of four opened up about how their lives have changed since the talks with NBCUniversal (NBCU) began, claiming their family’s home “started being watched” by people “looking for answers.”
“My daughter couldn’t even go to swim class without us being trailed by people looking for answers. Well y’all have the answers and y’all still don’t wanna listen to them,” Wade, 38, wrote.
Union’s complaint, filed with California‘s Department of Fair Employment and Housing (DFEH), accuses NBC’s Paul Telegdy of threatening her for speaking out about racism on set. It also names FremantleMedia and Simon Cowell‘s Syco, as well as NBCU, Variety reports, adding that these kinds of complaints often lead to lawsuits.
“We took Ms. Union’s concerns seriously, and engaged an outside investigator who found an overarching culture of diversity on the show,” NBCU said in a statement to Global News on Thursday evening. “NBCUniversal remains committed to creating an inclusive and supportive working environment where people of all backgrounds are treated with respect.”
In a statement, Union’s attorney Bryan Freedman alluded to the company’s recent statement of support regarding the Black Lives Matter movement, saying it was at odds with NBC’s treatment of Union.
“When Gabrielle Union informed NBC of racially offensive conduct during the taping of America’s Got Talent, NBC did not ‘stand’ with her in ‘outrage at acts of racism,’” Freedman said.
On Monday, NBC tweeted: “We stand with our black employees, colleagues, partners, and creators in outrage at acts of racism. Black Lives Matter.”
Freedman said in his statement that “NBC did not care enough to either promptly investigate Ms. Union’s complaints or even ask HR to get involved.”
“Rather, NBC stood against her and directed its ‘outrage’ at Ms. Union for whistleblowing about the racially offensive conduct she experienced while working for NBC on America’s Got Talent,” the statement read.
“In sharp contrast to NBC’s recent statement on race, what was truly an ‘outrage’ was the fact that Paul Telegdy, Chairman of NBC Entertainment, actually threatened Ms. Union in an attempt to silence her from telling the truth about racist actions that took place on the show.
“There is no place for this type of racial bullying in the workplace, and it is going to take more than a Tweet from NBC to demonstrate that NBC intends to create an environment free from racism.”
NBCU told Global News “The allegation that anyone involved in this process threatened Ms. Union is categorically untrue.”
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