Former Buffalo Public Schools Superintendent Pascal Mubenga and School Board member Lewis "Muki" Hawkins have been accused of sexually harassing a school district employee, according to a Notice of Claim filed Thursday.
Attorneys representing Buffalo Public Schools Chief Equity and Governance Officer Antoinette Amos have filed a Notice of Claim against the Buffalo Board of Education and Mubenga alleging sexual harassment, retaliation and abuse of authority under New York Civil Rights Law, according to a release from the Law Office of John V. Elmore.
Kristen Elmore-Garcia, an attorney with the firm, told BTPM News on Thursday they've been working with Amos "for a few weeks now to develop a comprehensive Notice of Claim that would really put the school district on notice of the potential legal action coming against them."
The filing alleges Amos was subjected to unwanted sexual advances by Mubenga, who abruptly resigned Monday from the school board, and Hawkins. According to the claim, Amos reported the conduct but the district failed to adequately address her complaints or protect her from further harassment.
Amos accused Mubenga of repeatedly touching and propositioning her despite her refusals, including allegedly forcing her hand onto his genitals and striking her on the buttocks. She separately alleges Hawkins made an unwanted sexual advance and later retaliated by threatening her and spreading false claims that she was involved in an affair. Amos contends district officials failed to implement meaningful protective measures after she reported the conduct, although her written complaints were eventually referred to Human Resources and outside counsel for investigation.
Amos said in a statement that she chose to come forward in hopes of encouraging other women to speak out about workplace misconduct.
"I have learned that sometimes the most important thing a woman can do is refuse to be silent," Amos said. "If that means getting into good trouble, then I hope my voice encourages other women and girls to believe that their dignity is worth defending, and their boundaries deserve to be respected."
Elmore-Garcia added that she does foresee a lawsuit being filed.
"The school district will be entitled to take Miss Amos's testimony under oath," she said. "Only once that testimony is complete will we have fulfilled all the necessary steps to begin a formal course of litigation."
Amos' attorneys argue the allegations reflect broader concerns about workplace culture within the district and contend the conduct violated public trust and employees' rights to a workplace free from harassment.
"This is harassment coming from the top of the district, and this type of behavior and this type of culture flows from the top," Elmore-Garcia said. "She is experiencing incalculable stress right now and wants to get back to performing at the level she was naturally equipped to do before she was subject to all of these unwanted advances."
Hawkins could not be immediately reached for comment.
Buffalo Teachers Federation President Rich Nigro released a statement regarding the allegations, which said, in part: "The Buffalo Teachers Federation is alarmed and disgusted by the accusations revealed in the recently released Notice of Claim against former Superintendent Mubenga and the Buffalo Board of Education, and the allegations of sexual harassment against Board of Education member Hawkins. Harassment of any kind is troubling. Sexual harassment, however, is particularly insidious. I am especially troubled that, in a profession where the majority of employees are female, it appears that intentional and immediate action was not taken at the first reports of sexual misconduct by anyone affiliated with the Buffalo Board of Education – be that the Superintendent, a Board of Education member, or anyone else."
The full statement can be read below the Notice of Claim.
EDITOR'S NOTE: A previous version of this article stated Mubenga and Hawkins were named in a lawsuit. It has been updated to reflect that they were named in a Notice of Claim.
