American Express slapped with lawsuit alleging discrimination against White employees: The former employee alleges 'anti-racism' policies at American Express fostered 'tremendous animosity'

The lawsuit alleges that amid the racial tensions roiling the U.S. in 2020, Amex implemented "anti-racism" policies throughout its corporate structure that "gave preferential treatment to individuals for being Black and unambiguously signaled to White employees that their race was an impediment to getting ahead in the company."

Netzel said such policies fostered a workplace rife with "a tremendous amount of animosity" in which White employees were unfairly punished or passed over for promotions, while some Black employees were promoted merely to meet racial quotas and employees were encouraged to "root out in McCarthy-era fashion people who didn't agree with this overall philosophy."

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Netzel maintained that this created an atmosphere in which White employees were treated disparately and forced to undergo trainings in which they were told to treat Black coworkers differently.

"We weren't allowed to talk before they talked in a meeting," he said, adding that they were explicitly advised against things such as touching Black people's hair, as if it were a frequent occurrence. According to the lawsuit, "no admonishments were given to Black employees nor did the trainings direct Black employees on how they should conduct themselves around other races."

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The lawsuit's claims echo previous allegations of discrimination Amex has faced. In 2021, five current and former employees told FOX Business on condition of anonymity that the company engaged in "reverse discrimination" against White employees, barring them from promotions and steeping the workplace in the tenets of critical race theory. Amex categorically denied the accusations at the time.