A professional rock and ice climber of Ethiopian and Samoan descent is facing a defamation lawsuit over allegations that he falsely accused a white outdoor gear designer of making racist comments during a June interaction, leading to the complainant losing his job.
Johnathan Talbot had worked for Outdoor Research LLC until shortly after meeting Manoah Ainuu at a bar in Bozeman, Montana, on June 20. The interaction led Mr. Ainuu to accuse Mr. Talbot of being “racist and entitled” and claim that the Outdoor Research employee “tried to fight me.”
Mr. Ainuu subsequently took to social media to drive a campaign calling for Outdoor Research to reprimand or fire Mr. Talbot.
Mr. Ainuu is sponsored by The North Face, an outdoor clothing and gear company that’s a business competitor to Outdoor Research. In addition to accusing Mr. Ainuu of defamation, the lawsuit alleges that The North Face approved of Mr. Ainuu’s actions, with the company’s global senior athlete coordinator resharing Mr. Ainuu’s claims against Mr. Talbot on his own social media account.
According to the lawsuit, Mr. Talbot approached Mr. Ainuu and spoke to him only briefly before the professional rock climber became upset. The two happened to be walking toward the same bar in Bozeman and, once inside, Mr. Ainuu began pointing at Mr. Talbot, calling him a racist and directing other patrons to take out their phones and record the scene.
A bartender then approached Mr. Talbot, inquiring about what was going on, to which the Outdoor Research employee responded that he wasn’t entirely sure. Mr. Talbot again spoke with Mr. Ainuu in an effort to resolve the situation.
Hours after their interaction in the bar, Mr. Ainuu took to Instagram with his version of the interaction.
“[Mr. Talbot] came up to me and started talking all this stuff, started asking questions—very directly—about diversity. And I answered honestly, and he kept cutting me off, didn’t want to hear what he was wanting to hear, but what he was asking for, which is very, very obvious,” Mr. Ainuu’s initial Instagram post reads. “So, when I started to check him on it and correct him and direct him and educate his ... for free—for free, free, free, free, free—he got very defensive. So, I said yo, we’re done talking—this conversation is over bro.”
In the Instagram post, Mr. Ainuu wrote that once inside the bar, Mr. Talbot became apologetic and attempted to shake his hand.
“[Mr. Talbot] just started apologizing over and over again and I’m like ‘if you’re apologetic buy me a beer at least. That’s the minimum you can do,'” Mr. Ainuu’s Instagram post continues. “And right after that, he squared up to me got right in my face like this, and he’s like, ‘I didn’t do anything wrong.’ How do you apologize and say you don’t do anything wrong within like five seconds? Oh, because you’re not truly apologetic. So, this guy John who designs product or something for you guys OR, please [expletive] check him. This guy’s tripping, he’s racist.”
Climber Called for Gear Designer’s ‘Extermination’
In a subsequent Instagram post, Mr. Ainuu addressed Outdoor Research directly.“[Mr. Talbot] is not a good representation of your great brand,” Mr. Ainuu wrote in an Instagram post that tagged the Outdoor Research account. “I hope there are repercussions, or at least a corporate talk ... ideally an extermination.”
Mr. Ainuu also directed his followers to reshare his social media posts “in case OR doesn’t respond.”
“Aye all my (majority) white followers/allies [emoji]. This is your call out,” Mr. Ainuu wrote in one post. “My flesh really wanted to educate jon. Self-control is draining and exercised too often. Please help me take care of this boy. I can see if you watch and don’t share, whether from uncomfortability or apathy. Much love.”
According to the civil complaint, Outdoor Research did eventually terminate Mr. Talbot’s employment, costing him a job—with a base salary of $115,000—that he'd had only since March.
The complaint alleges that Mr. Ainuu eventually “admitted” to Outdoor Research that Mr. Talbot hadn’t actually said anything racist or offensive, although Outdoor Research still succumbed to the pressure brought by Mr. Ainuu’s social media followers, leaving Mr. Talbot “with no job and a besmirched reputation, and unable to secure work in his chosen profession.”
Representatives of The North Face and Outdoor Research didn’t respond by press time to requests for comment.
