A former longtime executive at the American Bankers Association is suing the organization for firing her after she allegedly tried to speak out about multiple instances of discrimination against minorities and women by her superiors.

In a complaint filed Thursday in D.C. Superior Court, former ABA Executive Vice President Christy Walika paints the association as an organization that publicly claims to support diversity but behind the scenes "women and minorities are subjected to systemic discrimination and a culture of fear designed to deter them from reporting discrimination or otherwise advocating for equal opportunity."

Walika is suing ABA after being fired following a 25-year career at the association, saying the group violated the D.C. Human Rights Act and the D.C. Family and Medical Leave Act after she reported discriminatory conduct. Her lawyers at Outten & Golden issued a news release about the lawsuit late Thursday.

"We hope this lawsuit helps our client and other women in the financial industry feel confident that they can come forward and speak out against discrimination and harassment without fear of illegal retaliation," attorney Susan Huhta said in a statement.

In a statement to CEO Update, ABA said it was "proud of the positive workplace our employees have created together at ABA and are gratified that we have been certified by independent reviewers as a great place to work."

"Our staff knows that harassment and discrimination is not tolerated at ABA," the group said. "We are confident a careful review of the facts in this case will show this claim has no merit."

Walika alleges that she and other women working at ABA were passed up for promotion because of their gender. The association's leadership is a "good old boys club" whose top positions have been occupied almost exclusively by older white men, the lawsuit states.

Walika recounted examples of what she characterized as sexist and racist behavior by her superiors. In one instance, the male leadership allegedly campaigned against a potential candidate for CEO by calling her as "jiggle tits" and said the woman was "throwing her tits" in bankers' faces to get attention.

In another, a senior executive asked a female employee what color underwear she was wearing and referred to an Asian American employee as "the Asian lady." Another senior executive often verbally abused female employees, calling them "stupid" and "bitches" and comparing them to monkeys.

Walika also alleged former ABA board Chairman Stephen Wilson made unwanted sexual advances toward female staffers but the group's leadership did nothing about it. Wilson is currently a state senator in Ohio. CEO Update contacted Wilson's senate office for comment, but a staffer said he was not immediately available.

ABA CEO Rob Nichols, who joined the association in August 2015, was told about the abusive behavior but chose to tolerate it, Walika alleged. The former executive said she was passed over for a key promotion, earned less than her male counterparts and saw her responsibilities reduced. She was fired in May because of her behavior, according to the lawsuit.

Walika wants ABA to compensate her for loss of wages and benefits as well as emotional damages. She is also asking the court to order the association to reinstate her to her previous position or award her pay she would have otherwise received.

This story has been updated to include comments from the American Bankers Association.

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