A Japanese Professor of Translation Studies at the University of London,
has been told by an Employment Tribunal Judge that being recommended a sushi restaurant by a colleague who “likes” sushi is neither racist discrimination nor harassment.
Professor Nana Sato-Rossberg took her employer to an
employment tribunal in March, claiming that she had been racially discriminated against, harassed and victimized by her colleague, Provost Claire Ozanne. At the time, Sato-Rossberg was acting head of the department for Languages, Culture and Linguistics at the School of Oriental and African Studies (SOAS) at the University of London.
In her complaint, Sato-Rossberg cited examples of Ozanne saying that she enjoyed “Japanese food and that her [Ozanne’s] family like it and eat sushi” whilst engaging in small talk in the workplace offices.
The Professor, who is a member of staff in the Japan Research Centre, told the tribunal that Ozanne “exhibits racist microaggression attitudes towards her [sic]” and referred to Ozanne discussing her husband having a job in a Japanese Bank and her family’s interest in Japanese cuisine.
