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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.
Like me, she was a doctor
- Workplace Unfairness
- Female
- Latino/a or Hispanic
- Health Care
- Left & is now Self-Employed
- Health Care
- Coworker
- Insubordination
- Personal Response
- Unbelievable
The worst job was at the hospital. There was a woman who was very difficult to work with. Like me, she was a doctor. But she had no office. I felt really bad for her. I had an office on my floor that was vacated so I offered it to her. I asked my boss and he didn't have a problem with it. The next day she comes into the office and starts measuring it. She came to me and said, "Salona, my things won't fit in that space. But I think they will fit in your office." I had to calm myself down and then I said to her, "Well, Jill, since you're not going to sit on top of me, you're going to have to perch if you want to use my desk." So she got my point and over the weekend she moved her things in to her office.