$40 million Gabrielle Union-Wade called out Simon Cowell for discrimination and took America’s Got Talent to court

Gabrielle Union-Wade and Dwyane Wade form one of the most influential couples in the NBA universe.

The Love and Basketball actress was named one of the most influential people in the world by TIME magazine in 2020. Gabrielle Union is renowned for her activism and for being a cultural icon for an entire generation.

Her spouse, Dwyane Wade is no unknown quantity either as we know. The Flash is the Sheriff of Wade County and is the GOAT for the Miami Heat franchise.

Also read: Gabrielle Union, who spent $20,000 a night on strip clubs, shut down Dwyane Wade’s plans to start an Only Fans

Wade was part of 4 Miami Heat Championships, including his breathtaking run in 2006. The explosive guard remains a fan favorite with the Heat faithful.

Despite their high-profile relationship and millions in worth, it isn’t that they live a privileged lifestyle entirely. Race and the age-old problem of racism have bothered the star duo too.

Union initiated a complaint against her employers, NBC and America’s Got Talent for racism and sexism in the workplace.

What happened in the lead-up to Union’s complaint against NBC?

Gabrielle Union, owing to her status, was selected to judge the famous reality TV show “America’s Got Talent”. Mrs. Wade soon became part of the furniture of the show and grew in popularity.

Union’s style, however, offended a few in-house at NBC. Gabrielle was allegedly told that her hairstyles were “too black” and was called “difficult” to deal with. The latter was in response to Union asking one of the producers of the show, Simon Cowell, to not smoke indoors.

Add reporting Jay Leno and casual racism from his end to the list, and Union’s “rap sheet” at NBC grew. The Producers wanted to “refresh” the judging panel around the time Gabrielle came out with her allegations. All of this amounted to what it sounds like, an extremely toxic environment.

Union was forced to file a discrimination complaint against the show and its producers eventually. The complaint was filed with the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, California.

Allegedly, this prompted threats at Gabrielle’s direction too. However, the complaint was set to hit the mainstream and dislodge NBC. An amicable solution and subsequent settlement, however, were agreed upon. The amount and details of the same are undeclared.

Calling out the racism and sexism in an organization as big as NBC isn’t a small deal. Wade has another family member to be eternally proud of.

Also read: “Don’t ever make moves on my wife again Jimmy Butler!”: When Dwyane Wade got protective of Gabrielle Union after the now Heat star hit on her in public