Mc Donnell Douglas Corp. V. Green - Early History of The Parties

Early History of The Parties

McDonnell Douglas was an aerospace company in St. Louis at the time of the lawsuit, but has since been acquired by Boeing. Percy Green was a black mechanic and laboratory technician laid off by McDonnell Douglas in 1964 during a reduction in force at the company.

Green, a long-time activist in the civil rights movement, protested that his discharge was racially motivated. He and others used cars to block roads to McDonnell Douglas factories. On one occasion, someone used a chain to lock the front door of a McDonnell Douglas downtown business office, preventing employees from leaving, though it was not certain whether Green was responsible.

Soon after the locked-door incident, McDonnell Douglas advertised for vacant mechanic positions, for which Green was qualified. Green was not hired, McDonnell Douglas citing his participation in blocking traffic and chaining the building.

Green subsequently filed a complaint with the EEOC, sued in U.S. District Court, and later appealed the decision to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit before the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.

The case was argued in front of the U.S DIstrict Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals, and in front of the Supreme Court by Louis Gilden, a leading civil rights attorney and sole practitioner from St. Louis. The Supreme Court's decision was awarded to Green in a 9-0 vote.