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.”
