Companies talk about diversity but the reality is different

I am a 44 year old latina who worked for a large Florida insurance company for 7 years and got fired recently allegedly for my "standard of conduct". You see, myself and 2 other employees ( who I thought were my friends and who have done this same exact thing many,many times) were joking and ranting about the company. The next thing you know, my manager calls me and lets me know that I have been reported as doing this and then HR calls me and exactly a week later, my services were terminated.

My husband, who happens to be american, feels that there is a discriminatory smell to the whole thing,considering that the two other female employees were white; he also felt that they seem to have made the decision to terminate my services very quickly.

I have never looked at using my heritage or my culture to get prefential treatment; I have never looked at a person and seen color or religion.. I have looked at talent and hard work and performance are what would set you apart. I also have a strong sense of justice, usually for others; I cannot stand seeing another person being vilified or berated or talked badly about and would always speak up against such treatment.

I was in middle management with this company and probably one of the handful of hispanic women in Jacksonville, Florida who had a management role. I have always dressed and been professional at work and have always established what I thought were very collaborative relationships with a lot of other leaders and peers in the company. Yes, I have been outspoken about certain upper management decisions and have always been honest enough to provide feedback on how it was perceived by workers. I have been an employee advocate because I have always felt a responsibility to the single mothers who are working hard and to the employees trying to ekked out a living during this hard times. I was blessed with being a leader and felt that I had to speak out when certain practices or decisions were not to the employees' benefits. I felt sometimes that the company talked about their employees being their biggest asset but yet when the time came to give out raises, they questioned why an employee got a 5 ( the highest rating) when they were just doing their job.

I have heard of others in the company that have literally 'cussed' in meetings who have only gotten slaps in the wrist because they held positions higher than mine. I also know for a fact that an african-american employee was usually treated with 'kid gloves' because she threaten them with a lawsuit and the media,even though this same employee had made sexual overtures at her manager and has used company email to solicit..this employee still works for the company.

I have worked for 21 years to be in the position that I was and now I have to start from scratch. I feel that even my civil rights, my right to freedom of speech has been impinged upon, since this incident had occurred outside company property, but they told me that because I was on company time,being an exempt employee, that it was a standard of conduct issue. I thought to myself, what happened? is this not America? did I not have as much right as the next Jane Doe to make comments? plus, the people I made comments to were not just colleagues, they were friends and they have made the same rants on many, many other occasions.. all of a sudden, they were saints?

I am trying to get support from other latinos and latinos from across the country to see if they have been treated badly and if my situation can be deemed as discriminatory.. what do you think?