'The Gilded Age of Biglaw’: Biglaw Culture Breeds Big Bonuses, But Little Diversity

If you are reading this, then you probably believe you have a social responsibility. This column is for you. This column is for the crusaders of change.

“To whom much is given, much is tested / Get arrested, guess until he get the message.” –Kanye West

In his 1936 DNC Renomination Speech, Franklin Delano Roosevelt pronounced, “There is a mysterious cycle in human events. To some generations much is given. Of other generations much is expected. This generation of Americans has a rendezvous with destiny.”  From the Great Depression to World War II; from The Great Gatsby to Pearl Harbor; from the Silent Generation to the Baby Boomers; and from Generation X to the Millennials, it is damn near impossible to comprehend everything FDR’s generation has been through and witnessed. It is no wonder why Tom Brokaw named FDR’s contemporaries as the “Greatest Generation.”

There is much progress to be made in our society to be sure, but over the last 100 years we have endured so much, learned so much, and have evolved into a much more civil society. Growing up, I remember my dad was always watching Peter Jennings. My father often reminded me that Peter Jennings was a high school dropout, but by working hard and perfecting his craft he was considered to be every bit as good as Tom Brokaw and Dan Rather. My dad loved an American success story. He was enamored with the “rags to riches” tales of his time. Like many Asians, we would watch John Wayne movies together and after each movie he would remind me that Mr. Wayne started his career as a prop boy. Although the “Duke” didn’t have much formal training, through hard work and perseverance he filmed over 200 movies and had one of the greatest careers ever in show business.

I haven’t always been the most attentive in church; in fact, I have rarely been to one in the past few years. But the last time I was in church, I remember the Pastor proclaiming, “We are here for only a moment, visitors and strangers in the land as our ancestors were before us. Our days on earth are like a passing shadow, gone so soon without a trace (I Chronicles 29:15).” For whatever reason, his sermon hit me to the core. How many of us ever reach our destiny before Charon or Haros expects payment for our passage? Death is the great equalizer. How would you like to be remembered? As a student of history, I believe we have labeled FDR’s cohort as the “Greatest Generation” because of all they experienced, endured, and witnessed together. They were truly baptized by the fire.

I believe diversity is best encapsulated by differences in experiences. I can’t fathom all the personal narratives of the generation who experienced the Progressive Era, the Jim Crow South, the Civil Rights Movement, Executive Order 9066, Brown v. Board of Education, the Protest at Selma, and the Voting Rights Act of 1965. In 1933, they dropped the gold standard to avoid being crucified by a cross of gold.  In 1962, they narrowly escaped a nuclear war. When it rains, it pours. As a generation they all experienced the same events, but there were certainly qualitative differences in the level of experiences. As Roger Miller once said, “Some people feel the rain, others just get wet.” It seems nowadays everybody is obsessed with your pedigree, education, and profession, but that’s never been my main interest. I never found that someone’s career choice gave me the best insight into who he or she really was as a person, as an individual. I have come to realize that experience is the dearest teacher. A smooth sea never made a skilled mariner. The most interesting people I have met are those with the most life experience. The enlightened ones are those that have endured the greatest conflicts and sufferings.

When I was young, I remember how pissed all my friends’ big brothers were when Chris Webber opted to attend a suburban private school in lieu of a Detroit public school. They often wondered aloud, “How could he betray us?” I didn’t understand their fervor and passion at the time. I was too young. When former Duke point guard Jason Williams was deciding whether to represent the local community or don a Blue Devil’s jersey, his dad asked him, “Which would you rather be: a king among paupers or a king among kings?” Jason Williams, like Chris Webber before him, opted for the “better environment.” After all, who wants to be a prophet amongst paupers when you can profit amongst professionals? Even Lebron James (aka the “Hometown Savior,” aka the “Chosen One”) decided to head south for championship rings and glory. Only recently did he come to realize that all that is gold does not glitter. Only a fortunate few will ever make it up the mountain, the vast majority will never see the mountain top.

Some of us were raised in tight quarters, small neighborhoods, and with lack of viable transportation to anywhere meaningful. These elements all help to produce close-knit cultures. Through scarce resources and strong relationships, we become quite attached to our communities. We develop tribal instincts. Unfortunately, sometimes we develop an “us vs. them” mentality. We become incensed when others profess to know our struggle, feel our pain. We can become quite apathetic towards those from better neighborhoods, the same people who often preach how we can improve our impoverished lives. I have always been wary of people who gave advice with silver spoons in their mouths.

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Some students sought to delay their final exams this semester. Please profess your warnings about their future. Please impose your self-righteous beliefs on the students while comparing your past to their present. If you want to interfere with other people’s lives, then you should understand more than just your business. Maybe the students do think they’re special snowflakes; maybe it’s something you know nothing about, or care to learn about it. Who are you to judge? Too often people use their own experiences as sermon. They mistake their case-based judgments as absolute truth. Too often people rely on anecdotal evidence instead of attempting to understand complex interconnected data across a continuum. Sometimes even those with the best intentions know not what they do. For everyone we meet is fighting a battle; everyone has his or her own cross to bear. One could be successful in many aspects, yet lack civility. A person may have three degrees, but still have less class than a half-day of school.

It is a sin to attempt to gentrify everything we encounter. I hope one day we can realize that we are all in this boat together. Our struggles are interlinked, our solidarity is our survival. We are all each other’s consequences. We are our brother’s keeper. An optimal environment is one where everybody has the opportunity to excel. The outcome isn’t always going to be fair, but doesn’t everyone deserve a fair shot? Diversity does not happen by accident. Diversity is not self-executing. For some people much is given. Of other people much is expected. The truth is we all have our own rendezvous with destiny.

The ever evolving conditions of our lives define the destiny of our time. The generations before us sought to end communism and the Cold War. For some in our generation, their destiny is also to fight in war. For us civilians, maybe our mission is more nuanced. We can each take up our cross daily. There are bad apples in every generation, this piece isn’t for them. If you are reading this, then you probably believe you have a social responsibility. This column is for you. This column is for the crusaders of change.

We have the opportunity to change the waterfront on diversity and inequality in the legal industry, in any industry we so desire. The sacrifices and experiences of the generations before us don’t necessarily make them better than us; for everything they have done, we have gained. Our experiences may never be inscribed in stone, but just as the “Greatest Generation” had their rendezvous with destiny, we too have a special date with this enrapturing mistress. I pray that when we are ultimately weighed and measured, we are not found wanting. Instead let it be said, whether in the majority or in the minority, you and I fought the good fight.


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Renwei Chung is the Diversity Columnist at Above the Law. You can contact Renwei by email at projectrenwei@gmail.com, follow him on Twitter (@renweichung), or connect with him on LinkedIn