Freedmen Excluded from Google Settlement — AFLF Demands Answers

This week, the American Freedmen Legal Fund is sending both a formal email and a certified letter to Attorney Ben Crump demanding answers about the exclusion of Black Google employees—specifically Freedmen with U.S. slavery ancestry—from the Cantu v. Google $28 million settlement.

In a March 24, 2025 statement by Gunn Coble LLP, it was revealed that Black employees were removed from the class at the request of Ben Crump and his legal team, who are representing a separate case, Curley v. Google LLC. That case is said to address overlapping claims of race discrimination and pay equity.

But this decision raises urgent questions:

• Did Ben Crump’s team get consent from all Black employees before removing them from Cantu?

• Does Curley v. Google specifically recognize American Freedmen under the Civil Rights Act of 1866?

• Are Freedmen being treated as a protected class—or as a generic subset of “Black” under DEI language?

We are demanding a written response within 20 business days to clarify whether Freedmen were wrongfully excluded without a guarantee of inclusion or redress in Curley.

This is more than legal strategy—this is about federal status, historical injury, and rightful legal standing. American Freedmen are not interchangeable with modern identity politics. We are protected by law, and any exclusion from civil rights remedies without proper representation violates our rights.

AFLF will continue to monitor both Cantu v. Google and Curley v. Google and publish updates accordingly.

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