The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) dropped a discrimination lawsuit against the ownership of a Home2 Suites by Hilton Hotel in Dothan on Thursday.
According to court documents, the EEOC requested a federal judge drop the agency's lawsuit on Thursday against Harmony Hospitality over recent "Administration policy changes" by President Donald Trump.
"On January 20, 2025, President Trump issued an Executive Order titled "Defending Women from Gender Ideology Extremism and Restoring Biological Truth to the Federal Government." ("the Order") On January 29, 2025, the Office of Personnel Management issued "Initial Guidance Regarding President Trump's Executive Order Defending Women," directing that all federal employees must comply with and take actions to effectuate the Order. ("OPM Guidance") The EEOC's continued litigation of the claims in this action may be inconsistent with the Order and the OPM Guidance," Christopher Lage, deputy general counsel for the EEOC, said in a filing on Thursday.
The EEOC filed a lawsuit in June against Harmony Hospitality and alleged they were discriminating against an employee because of sex.
The complaint alleged Hitesh Patel, Harmony Hospitality owner, discriminated against a "gay, non-binary male" employee by firing him in February 2022 after he showed up to a meeting in "capri-cut joggers, pink-painted nails, and box braids."
An attorney for Harmony Hospitality denied the discrimination allegations in September, saying "age, race, gender, and/or other protected status played no part whatsoever in any action by this defendant."
Eeoc by Caleb Taylor on Scribd
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