Corporate America Is Complicit

The act of choking the life out of George Floyd has horrified people of good conscious. Yet it took the resulting backlash of mass protests and violent riots to awaken many to the fact that Mr. Floyd's dehumanization was business as usual in this country and Corporate America has been aiding and abetting all the while.

A brief history lesson. Whether you count 16th century trafficking by the Spanish, or the famed 1619 trafficking by the English to the shores of what we now refer to as the United States of America, the thinking that led to forced transport of Africans to this land predate the American experiment itself. That thinking gave rise to the rationalization that dehumanization was a God given right. That thinking gave rise to a nation fueled by chattel slavery and a prosperous economy as a result. That thinking gave rise to corporations and cottage industries. That thinking gave rise to individual fortunes and everyday livelihoods. That thinking created industries of all sorts from banking to bar-tending; from academia to agriculture; from textiles to technology, companies large and small profited for generations from the stripped choice and forced labor of slaves. Corporate America was forming. 

Mr. Floyd was originally detained following a call from a merchant alleging his use of a counterfeit $20 bill. Reminiscent of overseers arriving to enforce the Slave Code, officers received the 911 call using advanced communications and information technology, sped to the scene in a late model automobile, arrived dressed in standard issue uniforms in possession of guns, batons, body cameras, badges and other police department provisions. Clearly, Corporate America's vendor relationship with the police means it profitably supplies goods and services used to efficiently slaughter Black bodies such as Mr. Floyd's.

In other words, it is a perfectly legal and accepted business practice to enable unjust, and at times illegal behavior, with no retribution for the the enablers. Worse yet, the enablers have no incentive and have proven unwilling exert pressure, increase prices or withdraw their names from bids when their goods are used for unjust purposes. This is the way of our economic system. Suppliers earn a profit, the market celebrates them and injustice is served. This has proven true outside of law enforcement as well, consider predatory lending, disinvestment in poor neighborhoods and rural counties and food desserts to name a few.

These actions are individual, yet integrated, and part of one dynamic economic system. It's the very system that formed Corporate America, and it's the very system that threatens it. 

                         Link: Anti-Racism Resources

People Are Tired

Back to history. The stewards of the early free enterprise had an advantage, that advantage was their gender, their family of origin and their white skin. This is not to say they didn't work hard, of course they did, but they also worked hard to secure their gains while actively working to disadvantage African-American citizens. They were actively creating a status quo that was inherently unjust with laws that protected their fortunes and fortified those fortunes for generations, even to this very day. We need look no further for this objective truth than the Homestead Act, the Supreme Court's Dred Scott decision, Jim Crow laws, the refusal of access to GI bills for veterans, redlining, separate and unequal education, mass incarceration, and the list goes on. These actions were, and still are, knees on the necks of African-Americans.

On the flip side we see inherited wealth, access to capital, government subsidies, voting rights, home ownership, education and all the contributing factors that lead to active participation in the marketplace as entrepreneurs, employees and consumers. In other words, the American Dream was abundantly available to White citizens while legally kept from African-Americans. 

Today we're are more informed, less afraid and more desperate for change. 400 years is a really long time. A REALLY-LONG-TIME. Admittedly, some of the ideology of the past has changed, but too many of the institutions, the systems that enabled and reinforced that thinking, have not. For example, in 2020 reasonably intelligent people not in denial or pandering to bigots, will acknowledge that the notion of race is a man made lie. Modern science has proven that race is a biological non sequitur following examination of the human genetic code. However, racism is real, and its discriminatory, unjust effects are still felt in education, entertainment, technology, medicine, financial services, government, etc. The language about race has changed, but the refusal to tangibly deal with its residue of inequity and injustice remain. Like fortunes of the past, this residue is inheritable and exponential.

We've recognized and endured these disparities for 400 years and people are tired. Remember, Mr. Floyd's death was one in a long string of trauma tolerated over decades. After many requests for criminal justice, this time is different. The Floyd murder was the proverbial "straw" that seems to have awakened a nation and forced a choice to be for justice or against it. History shows that an oppressed people eventually receive their due, or die trying while taking many with them. I contend the metaphoric powder keg lit in the streets of the U.S.A. and is primed for redirection at Corporate America, the question being not if, but when.

Talk Is Cheap

Before you interpret my writing as a call for a revolution or rebuke of capitalism, know it's quite the opposite. In fact, I'm a capitalist and believe it has proven the best economic system in history. This is a demand for equitable treatment within our capitalist system, and a warning that without it, Corporate America will experience the same uprisings that are being directed at law enforcement. It's time to wake up to this issue in the workplace and in the marketplace at large. Ignorance and apathy are no longer viable options.

Like the criminal justice system, Corporate America has provided its share of soothing words and token actions in the past. Responses including diversity initiatives, affinity groups and staffing heads of inclusion often fall woefully short of the real issue, systemic change that removes the barriers from African-American employees’ ability to thrive within our organizations. The fact is, most efforts to date are under resourced, lack real organizational influence, and wield no true authorization to effect change. In other words, no real power. These half-hearted approaches are akin to a grand jury releasing bad cops, which we now see resulting in police forces incurring unprecedented staff dismissals, funding reallocation and a public relations nightmare. Corporate America, will you be next?

Donating some money and offering flowery words are easy, but as we say in the community, "Don't talk about, be about it!" No more idle words and placating actions. While I certainly don't have all the answers, I do know it's time for meaningful action, and have a few thoughts to get started.

Don't talk about it, be about it!

People Vs. Profit

Capitalism and racism have enjoyed a symbiotic relationship since the founding of our nation. That's not debatable. That's not your fault. However, it is your problem. The rush to efficient profiteering historically disadvantages the most vulnerable, and it so happens that African-Americans are disproportionately part of that class. Knowing that, what are you intentionally doing to avoid the unintended consequences? Better yet, what are you doing to ensure your capitalist pursuits are as anti-racist as possible?

Every organization needs profit to survive. As a consequence, corporate leaders have a unique responsibility to repeatedly examine the positive and negative effect of that pursuit on its employees, customers, vendors and communities. Finally, that examination must be specifically contextualized from an African-American perspective if the desire is to address systematic barriers impacting us.

    Link: Being Black In Corporate America - An Intersectional Exploration

Courage Over Comfort & Convenience 

Reports show that as of December 2019, there were four Black CEOs at Fortune 500 companies. Four. Despite being 13% of the US population, we occupy only 3.2% of executive/senior manager positions throughout all of Corporate America. If nothing else, I know this to be anecdotally true having walked the halls of many companies throughout this country and often times being the "only one in the room." Trust me, this has NOTHING to do with lack of ambition, inability to execute, unwillingness to put in the time or any of the other subtle and not-so-subtle reasons stated to overlook African-American professionals for promotions, ripe territories, high visibility assignments, strategic projects and the like.

I contend that part of the issue is a desire for comfort and convenience. The pace of business demands efficiency, and it's admittedly easier and more profitable in the short-term, to default to the path of least resistance. The problem is, comfort and convenience favor the status quo, and the status quo reinforces racial injustice. The status quo worked for law enforcement....until it didn't.

If there's anything we can learn from the young people protesting in the streets this week, it's that courage drives change. While I'd like to believe there is good will among leaders of corporations, it's clear there is a lack of courage with respect to the issue of racial justice. We all know where the answers start - improve the recruitment, retention and promotion of African-American leaders.

Leaders set the tone and African-American leaders have a higher probability of bringing the kind of lived experience to decision making that will minimize racially insensitive outcomes. If Black Lives Matter in the streets, they also matter in conference rooms and board rooms. 

Equity Over Equality

Race neutral policies in companies miss the mark. They aim to put everyone on equal footing, but don't account for the fact that African-Americans for a century following emancipation were explicitly and systematically prohibited from schools and employment beyond hourly labor. Thus, the education and experience sought for the nations best employment opportunities were impossible to attain for 13% of the nation's population. Worse yet, these same race neutral policies tend to put all minorities into a single "of color" category effectively diluting the uniqueness associated with each. Such approaches are well intended, but intellectually lazy and only serve to reinforce the status quo.

I understand, it's a challenging dilemma to favor employees, vendors and customers because of their race. However, this nation's white citizens have been favored since its founding, and in fact, that bias has become the default. Meanwhile the disenfranchised of all other races, African-Americans in particular, have been left with the scraps. Corporate America's representation imbalance is by design, and it requires active, intentional engagement to counter it. Bias is built into the system and it will take thoughtful, compassionate bias to weed it out.

...this nation's white citizens have been favored since its founding, and in fact, that bias has become the default.

Corporate America has yet to effectively deal with the mental, physical, social, political and financial outcomes associated with 400 years of forced bondage, domestic terror and legal disenfranchisement from which it has tremendously benefited. Despite Corporate America’s out-sized influence and ability to reduce harm, conditions are still eerily similar to decades past. 

Corporate America, this time is different. This time those expressing outrage are of every hue, every age, every faith and gender. This time people are standing in solidarity around the world from South Africa to South Korea; statues symbolizing supremacy are falling in London and Louisiana. This time both organic and organized, activated physically and economically. The uprising will shift from criminal justice to corporate justice, it's just a matter of time. This time is different. This time is historic. What side of history will you be on? 

#WhiteSupremacy #WhitePrivilege #SystemicRacism #InstitutionalRacism #WhiteSilence #Leaders #History #AmericanHistory #Equity #Equality #Reality #Diversity #Inclusion #Leadership #BlackLivesMatter #BlackCareersMatter