☕️ The reverse discrimination lawsuit

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“Obviously there’s a lot going on in our country right now. I remember after the election, it kind of felt [like a] down period. My mum told me… [in November], ‘Just try to win the tournament just to give something for people to smile for’. So that’s what I was thinking about today when holding that [trophy].”
21-year-old tennis star Coco Gauff, speaking after claiming her second Grand Slam title at the French Open over the weekend. Gauff beat top-ranked Aryna Sabalenka 6-7, 6-2, 6-4.

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1979
A fire broke out on the ghost train ride at Luna Park Sydney, causing the deaths of seven people (six children and one adult). A coronial inquiry could not determine the exact cause of the fire. The ride was completely destroyed, and a plaque was erected in its place to honour the lives lost.

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The highest court in the U.S. has ruled in favour of progressing a lawsuit filed by a heterosexual woman who alleged ‘reverse discrimination’ after she was denied a promotion “in favour of another gay candidate”.

The U.S. Supreme Court ruled that workplace discrimination “does not vary based on whether or not the plaintiff is a member of a majority group”.

Here’s what you need to know.

Marlean Ames joined the Ohio Department of Youth Services as an executive secretary in 2004. During her time there, she was promoted to program administrator.

In 2019, Mes sought another promotion and interviewed for a newly created managerial role, but the department “ultimately hired a different candidate—a lesbian woman—to fill the role.”

Days after she interviewed for the job, she was demoted to the role she held when she initially joined the agency and received “a significant pay cut.” Her role was replaced by a gay man.

Ames then filed a lawsuit against the department, which she later lost. She tried to overturn the ruling in an appeal case, but failed.

The ruling was based on the idea that because Ames comes from a majority group, she needed to provide greater evidence than someone who came from a minority group. Both courts said she failed to meet this higher threshold of evidence.

The appeals court said she did not provide sufficient evidence that her workplace was an “unusual employer who discriminates against the majority.”

This week’s Supreme Court ruling did not decide on Ames’ original case. Instead, it needed to rule on whether U.S. law does in fact require a person from a majority group to meet a higher burden of proof.

The court unanimously decided that it does not.

It ruled that the standard of proof in workplace discrimination laws should be the same for everyone, regardless of whether you’re from a majority group or a minority group.

Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson, who wrote the justices’ response, said the case’s original ruling undermines federal laws that establish the “same protections for every individual”.

She said that federal laws do not draw “distinctions between majority-group plaintiffs and minority-group plaintiffs”, meaning the lower court’s decision to “impose special requirements on majority-group plaintiffs alone” was unfair.

The ruling gives way for Ames’ original ‘reverse discrimination’ case to be reheard in court.

Reporting by Achol Arok.

The operator of a jumping castle involved in an incident that killed six children in Tasmania in 2021 has been found not guilty.

Rosemary Anne Gamble pleaded not guilty to a charge of failing her work health and safety duty.

On Friday, Magistrate Robert Webster dismissed a charge against Gamble, finding the charge against her not proven.

A class action has been launched against the state of Tasmania and the jumping castle operator by the families of the children killed and injured.

On 16 December 2021, Hillcrest Primary School in Devonport, Tasmania held its end-of-year celebrations, which included a jumping castle.

Around 10am, a gust of wind lifted the castle into the air while seven children were inside.

The weather event that caused the castle to become airborne is known as a “dust devil”.

Five children died after falling from the airborne castle, while a sixth died after being hit by a piece of equipment that blew away.

Prosecutor Madeleine Wilson argued Gamble failed to comply with her duty, including properly training herself and her staff to safely operate the castle.

Gamble’s business partner Robert Monte told the court they taught themselves through YouTube.

Defence lawyer Chris Dockray SC argued the deaths were unavoidable, as the dust devil could not have been predicted.

Although Magistrate Webster was satisfied that Gamble “failed to comply” with her work health and safety duty “in some respects,” he was not satisfied her failures “were a substantial or significant cause of the children being exposed to the risk of serious injury or death.”

In a statement, Gamble said: “I am a mother. I can only imagine the pain that other parents are living with each and every day… Their loss is something I will carry with me for the rest of my life.”

Andrew Dodt, father of one of the children who died, said in a statement: “Our hopes are just shattered now”.

Georgie Burt, the mother of another child who died, told the media: “This outcome does not reflect the weight of our loss, nor the reality we live with every single day.”

Friday’s ruling is not the end of the case.

A coronial inquest will be held into the deaths.

This is a series of public hearings where the coroner will hear evidence to inform recommendations to prevent similar deaths.

It is not the same as a court hearing, and the coroner cannot find someone guilty of a crime.

Last year, the families of the children launched a class action in Tasmania’s Supreme Court.

A class action is a type of lawsuit where many people are represented by one plaintiff.

The case alleges that Tasmania (the operator of the school) and Taz-Zorb failed to take reasonable measures to ensure the safety of children.

The law firm running the case, Maurice Blackburn, said any child impacted by the incident and their close family members are eligible to join the class action.

Lawyer Dimi Ioannou told the ABC: “This class action is about seeking justice… These families feel the pain and trauma everyday and nothing will erase the suffering or bring back their lost children.”

Ioannou said the class action would not begin until the criminal proceeding and coronial inquest has concluded.

Reporting by Anju Dhanushkodi.

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Led by researchers at the University of Melbourne’s Doherty Institute, the world-first breakthrough targets immune cells to reach HIV where it lies in a type of white blood cells. Early lab testing shows this new technology can successfully “coax” the virus out of hiding in these cells, a key step towards eliminating it. The study’s co-author, Dr Paula Cevaal, said it’s “the first time this strategy has been shown to work in HIV-infected cells.” It’s hoped the research “could be a new pathway to an HIV cure,” although human trials are still some years away.

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Reporting by Emma Gillespie.

In case you missed it, Hollywood stars Ryan Reynolds and Hugh Jackman have become the co-owners of Australia’s SailGP team.

‘The Flying Roos’ compete in SailGP, a fast-paced international sailing league founded in 2018. And no, this is not the first professional sports team Reynolds has become involved with. The actor and entrepreneur became a co-owner of Wrexham AFC, a Welsh football team, in 2021.

Since Reynolds has become involved, the team has gone from strength to strength with three successive league promotions and attracted a global following through its spin-off documentary series ‘Welcome to Wrexham’. Here's to hoping Australia's SailGP team will see the same success!

Reporting by George Finlayson.

About two weeks ago, Taylor Swift announced that she bought the masters to her first six albums, meaning she now effectively owns all of her albums and has complete control over her creative work.

It was a surprising development that brought an end to one of the biggest and longstanding stories in pop culture of the past five years.

So what does an artist owning their masters actually mean, and how will this impact the music industry as a whole?