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.
Fitting In
Differences, even small ones, can lead to major problems in an employee/employer relationship
I have worked in many occupations, including being self-employed for many years. I chose to forgo getting married or raising a family and instead concentrated on my career.
Keep a low profile. Don't try to invite too much attention from people you work with. Try to blend in, and look/seem the same as everyone else around you.
I expected good performance and results to count at my new workplace, especially because we demanded similar principles in the firms we invested in.
I faked it. To have let others know of my feelings of alienation would have just increased the difficulty.
Having been raised in a small blue collar town, I was the first in my family to hold a professional corporate position.
I worked in the sports industry and there were a lot of times where I felt like gestures, comments, and suggestions were going way beyond "playful joking.
We had a company management meeting that could have generally and specifically addressed the lack of professionalism.
I am often questioned, some times ridiculed for not drinking alcohol at social events after work. Co-workers also often look down on fasting.
When I was moved to HR I found that all the people in HR were a clique. They were all white, went to lunch together and they all lived in the same area.
I quickly learned that competence or capability will not get you hired or promoted but political suaveness will. Being a good engineer I thought would get you promoted but actually people who were going out to the pub after work and had similar cultural backgrounds as the management were the ones getting promoted. Most of the time, I was the only black guy on the team and I didn't drink or smoke.
