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Wrote this in March for Counsel Magazine & remains relevant today. We cannot talk about equality, diversity & inclusion without first talking about racism. https://twitter.com/CounselMagazine/status/1274246323349397504
Equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives at the Bar are largely designed to remedy the issue that the profession is not fully representative. The emphasis is on the need to improve the numbers of people from diverse backgrounds accessing the profession.
But why are certain groups underrepresented to begin with? And why are we not asking this question first?
Spaces of power and influence, like the Bar, are not representative or equally accessible by underrepresented groups. The issue is structural. Racism, poverty, gender inequality and otherising are just some examples of systemic barriers that explain the status quo @Law_So_White
Without reference to, and understanding of, the root of the problem, equality, diversity and inclusion initiatives can be superficial strategies that are reduced to compliance, monitoring, data collection and tick boxes on forms – ironically often missing boxes for many people
Angela Davis: ‘I have a hard time accepting diversity as a synonym for justice. Diversity is a corporate strategy. designed to ensure that the institution functions in the same way that it functioned before, except that you now have some black faces and brown faces.'
There is no level playing field. We have all had different starting points in life and are born into starkly different circumstances. The world relates to us in different ways. To deliver the fairest outcomes, the conversation should not be about equality, but rather equity.
Seeing everyone as ‘the same’ runs the risk of ‘colourblindness.' The same applies when we don’t see people for who they are re religion, gender and other defining characteristics. In treating people ‘equally’ we erase context, culture, histories & personal circumstances.
Many chambers and law firms pride themselves on the percentage of their membership that comes from underrepresented groups, such as women, BAME, those with disabilities etc. Recruiting ‘different’ people, however, does not make an institution equal and inclusive.
A key consideration is whether our working cultures in chambers, courtrooms etc are truly inclusive, in allowing everyone to show up as their full selves.
I have often questioned whether I needed to be a ‘bit less me’ in order to access the Bar, and survive and succeed when I got there. Instances that I was not quite sure how to deal with, or did not actually understand at the time, include:
@Law_So_White
@Law_So_White
Being mistaken for everyone but counsel: the transcriber, staff, or defendant’s family;
Being told by someone that their only exposure to a Muslim, before me, was from the South Park sitcom;
Being called the other brown girl’s name or a totally made up name
@Law_So_White
Being told by someone that their only exposure to a Muslim, before me, was from the South Park sitcom;
Being called the other brown girl’s name or a totally made up name
@Law_So_White
And my input totally ignored until championed by those that are older, male and white.
I have lost count of the number of times I have had to say I do not drink alcohol and explain why, and awkward conversations where I have to justify why I am declining attendance at alcohol-centred events. @Law_So_White
When I was a pupil and in my early years of tenancy, I went to these events, because I wanted to feel involved, wanted the same access to networking opportunities, and did not want to be the ‘odd one out’. I did not feel comfortable going, but I went. @Law_So_White
Over the years, I have grown in confidence to just say no – but it can be incredibly isolating and alienating.
I have often felt like a poster girl for social mobility. Bangladeshi, Muslim, female, from a low income household, first generation to go to university, state-school educated, graduating top of my year in law from the University of Warwick, an LLM from LSE
Pupillage secured pre-BPTC, Outstanding in BPTC, plus various scholarships, awards and the like.
Is this proof that social mobility works?
Is this proof that social mobility works?
Statistics suggest otherwise. The BSBs BPTC Key Statistics 2019:
‘Of UK/EU BPTC graduates with
2.1 degree and Very Competent overall BPTC grade, 44% of them from white backgrounds had commenced pupillage, compared to around 23% of the BAME cohort with the same degree class.’
‘Of UK/EU BPTC graduates with
2.1 degree and Very Competent overall BPTC grade, 44% of them from white backgrounds had commenced pupillage, compared to around 23% of the BAME cohort with the same degree class.’
The data collection, forms and monitoring definitely tell us something.
Why is it that you are nearly twice as likely to get pupillage if you are white?
@Law_So_White
Why is it that you are nearly twice as likely to get pupillage if you are white?
@Law_So_White
Sometimes imposter syndrome creeps in & I wonder if I am a token. There have been a number of jokes about how many of the ‘diversity’ boxes I tick. This is what this narrative can do-make those of us who ‘make it’ feel like we are not here because we deserve it. @Law_So_White
Cosmetic changes do not go far enough. Until we actively engage with this subject with sincerity, the Bar and other spaces of power and influence will remain as exclusive, impenetrable and unrepresentative as they always have been.
Saturday morning therapeutic outpouring done 
