An “ambitious” “high achiever” at a homeless center in Michigan was an object of enmity by fellow employees and management, according to a lawsuit filed by the transgender staffer. She says she was threatened with violence by colleagues.

Devion Morgan said she thought she was giving back to the community of Ann Arbor when she took a job at the Washtenaw County Shelter Association, according to MLive, a local news outlet.

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Now Morgan is suing the foundation that runs the shelter for $25,000 in damages, after she says management ignored serial harassment by staffers and downplayed a threatening email that had her “hiding in my car, afraid of an attack.” 

Morgan filed her complaint on March 2 in Washtenaw County 22nd Circuit Court. She claims the shelter association violated the Michigan Civil Rights Act by discriminating against her based on her sex, sexual orientation, and gender identity.

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Morgan started at the shelter last year and worked her way up to operational specialist, the suit details, but it wasn’t long before she began feeling bullied by some co-workers, including transphobic slurs, derogatory remarks, and false accusations.

In November, Morgan became aware of a “threatening” email that was circulating among staff, which she says made her fear for her safety.

The lawsuit lists multiple mental and physical health effects Morgan suffered, including depression and high blood pressure. In an interview, Morgan said she’s been unable to return to work after she was placed on medical leave by her doctor.

“They have their flock of bullies,” Morgan said of the homeless shelter staff. She added that management “ignored” her concerns over the constant intimidation.

“Management said they didn’t know” about any harassment or discrimination prior to the threatening email that she reported, Morgan said. That claim is contradicted by evidence in her possession, Morgan asserted.

“I have messages on my phone,” she said.

A former co-worker of Morgan’s backs up her claims.

“Everybody else would be talking about her sexuality, going around there talking about her and stuff,” said Theresa Robertson, who worked directly with Morgan. She said that other employees would give Morgan “looks.”

“She came to me crying about it, upset about it, and I said, ‘You got to let somebody know about this. That ain’t fair. They can’t do that to you,’” Robertson said she told Morgan.

Robertson called Morgan “ambitious” and a “high achiever” at work, and added she “never did nothing to nobody.”

Officials at the Michigan foundation that runs the shelter dispute Morgan’s characterization of the shelter as a toxic workplace environment.

“We don’t tolerate any kind of harassment or discrimination at the shelter association,” Nicole Adelman, the association’s executive director, said in statement to the Michigan Department of Civil Rights (MDCR) prior to Morgan’s lawsuit.

Shelter officials claim Morgan made no complaints to management, according to a March 3 letter the MDCR sent to Morgan regarding an investigation of her case.

The shelter association stated that “the only incident and subsequent internal investigation that they knew about was regarding an email sent to some of the (shelter association’s) employees,” the MDCR letter states.

The shelter association says it conducted interviews with managers and staff that Morgan had identified as complicit in the harassment, and ordered employees not to forward or recirculate the “threatening” email, according to the MDCR letter.

Morgan said that during the shelter’s alleged internal investigation of the email, she noticed suspicious vehicles parked near her home and received repeated phone calls from blocked numbers.

“They are just sweeping this under the rug,” Morgan said of shelter foundation officials and the harassment she’s endured.  

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