We in the business and legal communities talk about diversity and inclusion. Most of the people of privilege who I know focus on the diversity component, but far fewer truly understand the importance of inclusion. I plan to work harder to ensure inclusion in my personal and professional life. And when I fall short, I beg to be informed. I ask all of us who have had the privilege of inclusion to do the same.
As a white man who ultimately attained a relative degree of privilege, I did not sufficiently understand or appreciate this for far too long.
I’ve been married for 33 years to an African American woman with whom we have three grown bi-racial daughters. My current business partner in Legal Innovators is African American. I co-founded Shearman & Sterling’s Diversity Committee 30 years ago and my legal practice has been highly international, causing me to work closely with people from a multitude of nationalities and cultures. But we all see the world through our own lenses, and I have rarely been excluded or unheard. I’m ashamed to say that this has led me to be insensitive to the hurt, anger and powerlessness of exclusion.
