How the Finance Industry Can Address Racism
There has been plenty of tough viewing on television recently. Racism can manifest in the most ugly forms
The senseless death of George Floyd, and the subsequent fallout, has put our worlds into sharper perspective. The response towards racism that’s heavily ingrained in our system has got us all thinking about our place in the world.
This applies to all walks of life, including Financial Services. Sure, there’s an increased push for diversity and inclusion. But it just feels like the latest fad or fashion. “Every other bank is doing it so we’ve got to be seen to be doing the same.”
Some of it is lip service. And The fact that Morgan Stanley’s first head of diversity is suing for discrimination could suggest that there’s still a long way to go before diversity is genuinely addressed.
The thing is it (racism and its ilk) goes deeper than having policies in place. Banks all have standards, regulations, and mission statements that will not accept such behavior. At least on the surface.
But what does that look like in the real world of financial services? An organization will reflect the society that underpins it. So redressing systemic imbalances requires action supported by the right structure and legal framework.
This is not just organizational. It’s societal. That’s why so many different conversations are being had right now. So much soul searching. So much more intentional listening and learning. How does this play out in staffing? What does this mean for the community we’re trying to serve? How can we make sure that we’re doing the right thing (and not just giving the impression that we’re doing the right thing?)
This is such a tough subject. A tough, but worthwhile, subject that needs to be addressed. We all need to be asking ourselves a lot more questions. Questions about how we see race, how we see imbalances within society, and how we are going to play a role in change.
I’d like to share insights from others that go a little way to explain my thoughts on race and change.
Firstly, comments from Mae Carol Jemison, the first black woman to travel into space when she served as a mission specialist aboard the Space Shuttle Endeavour. This is about the right to belong somewhere:
“Once I got into space, I was feeling very comfortable in the universe. I felt like I had a right to be anywhere in this universe, that I belonged here as much as any speck of stardust, any comet, any planet.”
Secondly, black author James Baldwin on change:
“Not everything that is faced can be changed, but nothing can be changed until it is faced.”
I feel we are at the start of a whole new dialogue. It’s a conversation that financial institutions of all kinds need to be involved in. “Diversity” as a concept is only part of the story. Lip service is not enough.
There’s plenty of learning to be had, including for people within the financial services industry. Here are some starting points:
- Black Lives Matter. Go to the website to learn what the movement stands for. A lot of people conflate it with the Black Panthers or some radical left-wing party. Read for yourself to learn more. Not what you think it stands for or what someone else tells you it stands for.
- 13th and When They See Us. Netflix is a great source of education on race issues. Take a look at 13th and When They See Us for a better understanding of how the past has shaped some of the current social imbalances, in addition to getting a better sense of the Black American racial experience.
- White Fragility: Why It’s So Hard for White People to Talk About Race and So You Want to Talk About Race. Yes, they are tough to read (and one reason why I put them further down this list). But staying in denial that structural imbalances exist won’t make them go away. Outsiders already think that financial services professionals exist in ivory towers, disconnected from the real world. These books are a way in which to reconnect and address racism in society.
May we all find enough peace with ourselves and others to make the changes that need to take place.
