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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.
Profit over People
- Workplace Unfairness
- Female
- Caucasian
- Information Technology/Internet
- Non-Profit
- Corporate Social Responsibility
- Personal Values
In 2000, I was the Vice-President of Finance for an entrepreunerial internet incubator. Within six months of joining, the internet bubble burst and all our funding was lost. The probabilty of our company being acquired was essentially non-existent and so I recommended that the remaining funds be used to give the employees severance. I was overruled. Instead of paying severance to the 20 employees that were left, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) decided to make one last effort to get acquired. At that point, I quit because I could not remain and implement the CEO's decision. After 15 plus years of working for private corporations whose sole purpose was to make money, I came to the conclusion that there was more to life. I left to actively search for a non-profit job.