| Producer of
RuPaul Events Is Sued in SDNY By Fired
Choreographer Now Arbitration Denied
By Matthew
Russell Lee, Patreon
BBC
- Guardian
UK - Honduras
- ESPN
SDNY COURTHOUSE,
Jan 14 – Chancelor Dayne
Benson worked as a
choreographer and then
creative director for Brandon
Voss' Voss Events, which
produces events for, among
others, RuPaul's DragCon and
Werq the World Tour.
According
to Benson, Voss called in an
"N-lover" and made other
racial slurs. Voss Events
employee Jon Norris "would
also routinely grope Mr.
Benson," who sued.
On January
6, 2021 U.S. District Court
for the Southern District of
New York Judge Katherine Polk
Failla held a proceeding.
Inner City Press covered
it.
The
complaint says "Mr. Voss and
Mr. Norris made it seem that
their actions were permissible
because many members of the
cast are gay, and that gay men
are entitled to take such
liberties with each other."
Discussion
turned to whether to vacate
default judgment (grants) and
to an SMS text message Brandon
Voss sent to Benson, stating:
"Reading through that book of
lies is embarrassing for you.
Your lawyer has a duty to fact
check things before filing a
frivolous lawsuit which she
didn't do. You were let go
because you are an awful
leader. Every dancer and
artist on that tour demanded
we get rid of you... All of
them would be happy to tell
anybody the problems you
caused."
Judge
Failla said, This cannot
happen again.
Jump cut one year
forward to January 14, 2022.
Judge Failla held another
conference in the case, and
Inner City Press again covered
it. Judge Failla read out an
order denying arbitration,
citing among other things
claimed ineptitude in using
DocuSing. Now a letter on next
steps is due by February 4.
The case
proceeds. It is Benson v. Voss
Events, Inc., 20-cv-6874
(Failla)
***
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