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Vote on Desiree Davidson's Story
Were they afraid we were planning a coup d'etat?
I spent my first summer during Columbia Law School at a firm in Philadelphia described as one of the best places in the city for black lawyers. I believed that if there was any place where I would have an equal chance at opportunities, be treated fairly and succeed, this would be it. There were three black female summer associates out of sixty that year but any time all three of us were in an office talking, one of the partners would knock on the door to see how we were doing. It happened too often to be a coincidence that sometimes we would purposely agree to meet in so-and-so's office to test our theory that we were being monitored. Like clock work, ten minutes after we would get together a partner would stop by.
Karen Lagos's Experiences
I thought to myself, I can stay at the company - or - if I had my own company, at least I would get judged on my ability. You tell them your fee, they like you or they don't. It was the most authentic way to get paid what I deserved, and I was really right.
There were a lot of men of color who were fabulous. I told them that I wanted to start my own company. The day after I gave notice, the stock market crashed. So one man of color called me in and said, "I don't want to know your personal situation but it may not be the best time to go out on your own.
I know the primary reason I left corporate America was because I wanted to have my own company, but thinking back I remember when I was so astonished by the behavior of some of the people in Corporate America.
The point was, there was one set of rules for one group and another set of rules for another and it was by gender. Men got enormous raises. And there were several men hired who I knew didn't have the qualifications and there were women who were over-qualified who couldn't even get an interview.