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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.
I didn't want corporate America to steal my soul
If you are a person of color or a woman, corporate America can steal a bit of your soul. It takes a certain kind of person to work in that environment. Once, I spoke at an African-American young professional association event and I told the guests, "Those of you who can work in corporate America and maintain a certain level of dignity, God bless you because it's not for me, I can't do it."