Russian Opera Singer Anna Netrebko’s Sex Discrimination Lawsuit Over Firing by N.Y. Metropolitan Opera Can Go Forward
From Thursday’s opinion by Judge Analisa Torres (S.D.N.Y.) in Netrebko v. Metropolitan Opera Ass’n:
After Anna Netrebko, an acclaimed opera singer, refused to repudiate Russian President Vladimir Putin in the wake of Russia’s 2022 invasion of Ukraine, the Metropolitan Opera fired her….
Netrebko first alleges that the Met’s February 27 Policy, in which it announced it would cut ties with artists and institutions that support or are supported by Putin, is “facially discriminatory” because it “singles out Russian artists.” The Met argues that the Policy was “a political statement” and demonstrates that Netrebko’s termination “ha[d] nothing to do with Netrebko being Russian” and everything to do with the Met’s support for Ukraine and Netrebko’s support for Putin….
The February 27 Policy is not facially discriminatory as it does not explicitly implicate a protected class. On its face, non-Russians can run afoul of the Met’s policy. Moreover, a policy that targets “a generalized political affiliation, [and] not a specific national origin,” cannot form the basis of a claim for national origin discrimination. That there exist Russian expatriates in the United States who support Putin does not compel a finding that the February 27 Policy facially discriminates against them.
Next, Netrebko alleges that the Met’s discriminatory motivation is evidenced by (1) the “pretextual nature” of its stated reason for her firing (Netrebko’s support of Putin), and (2) the fact that she was replaced by non-Russian performers. The Court disagrees.
First, the truth or falsity of the Met’s stated reason for Netrebko’s termination is immaterial so long as the Met’s decision was based on a belief held in good faith. Netrebko has alleged no facts which plausibly suggest that the Met’s stated reason for her termination masked an invidious motive to discriminate against Russians. This argument is, therefore, unavailing.
Netrebko’s claim that her replacement by non-Russian performers establishes pretext fares no better…. The [Complaint’s] treatment of Netrebko’s non-Russian replacements is too cursory to permit a jury to determine whether they were similarly situated. “Plaintiff must ‘show that similarly situated employees who went undisciplined engaged in comparable conduct.'” In support of this claim, Netrebko alleges only her replacements’ nation of origin. The SAC fails to describe how Netrebko’s non-Russian [Ukrainian, Italian, and Norwegian] replacements might be similarly situated as either Putin supporters or holders of a political belief or affiliation the Met finds similarly odious.
At bottom, the Met’s firing of Netrebko, “while potentially indicating unfair dislike,” does not sufficiently implicate her national origin to permit an inference of discrimination….
But the court concluded that
[Netrebko] has pleaded a claim of gender discrimination based on the “more favorable treatment” received by her male
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