Legal Question in Employment Law in New York

Re: racial discrimination

For more responses,re-submit question to LawGuru in LawGuru's "OTHER DISCRIMINATION (AGE, RACE, SEX,GENDER)" category & LawGuru's "CIVIL RIGHTS LAW" category.You were illegally subjected to "DISPARATE TREATMENT" because of race/sex when you were punished more severely for "choice words" directed at employee who insulted you with a racist,sexist slur than was employee who initiated offensive language by using racist,sexist slur.It's illegal for your employer to subject you to "DISPARATE TREATMENT" on basis of your race and/or sex whether by terminating you based on false accusation ("bogus charge") or by punishing you more severely than white and/or male employees for same conduct.Use of racist,sexist slurs such as "black bitch" in workplace can constitute "hostile work environment" & legal action can be brought against an employer who allows employees to create "hostile work environment" for another employee by sexual harrassment or by racist,sexist insults;however,I think your main claim against employer is for "DISPARATE TREATMENT" & may be possible for you to take legal action against your employer for monetary damages and/or reinstatement to your job position.HOWEVER:There're time limit deadlines for bringing such legal action:FIRST THING YOU WANT TO DO is consult experienced employment discrimination lawyer(s)as soon as possible as to "pros and cons" of how best to initiate legal action,e.g.,state court,or federal court,or complaint to federal EEOC (Equal Employment Opportunity Commission) or to NYSDHR (N.Y. State Division of Human Rights),or whether to bring legal action under Title VII or under Section 1981 of federal law.There are tradeoffs between choosing how to start the legal action & initially choosing one of above can prevent you from changing to another of the avenues listed above down the road.(I discussed some of these trade-offs in prior LawGuru answer I wrote in "LABOR AND EMPLOYMENT" category.)Some lawyers might take your case on contingency;there may be low cost/free legal help available from groups similar to Legal Aid & various civil rights groups or from law school clinics.I may be able to refer you to some of these groups if you e-mail me.In preparation for taking legal action,try to assemble evidence,as much documentation as you can of the facts you presented.The following could be useful: Written Complaints you submitted to employer's Human Resources Department & written response;List employees/witnesses who can corroborate some/all of facts you relate in your question;an Employee's Manual; employer's complaint procedures;chronology of events which ended in your termination;Performance Evaluations you received from employer during duration of your employment;List/chart of employees involved including their race & gender.Do you know of any other employees' claims of discrimination against your employer, especially claims similar to yours?