Gowling WLG is a ginormous international law firm — seriously, it has 1,400+ lawyers and 19 offices worldwide. You’d think someone at a firm that big would know that finding it noteworthy that a Black person was “very nice and extremely polite” is incredibly problematic.
The firm asked employees what Black history means to them. The responses were shared, and yikestown…. the following quote was captured on a computer screensaver in Gowling WLG Canada:
“My daughter inspires me a lot. When she was younger, she often spoke of her friend Daniel”, read the quote. “One day, my husband and I attended an event at her school and finally got to meet Daniel. He was very nice and extremely polite; my grandmother would have said he was ‘well brought up.’ Never during the course of her friendship with Daniel did my daughter mention he was black. That night, I went to sleep with the hope that one day, race-based conflicts would forever be behind us.”
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Notice how the quote centers the white experience — the writer’s ethnicity isn’t mentioned because it’s presumed to be white or at least in contrast to Black experience. Also, is the writer somehow shocked that a Black person is “well brought up?” What the hell. That the firm believes it’s noteworthy to highlight this quote seems massively telling.
Another message dug up as part of the campaign exclusively highlights Black culture and influence in the music and sports fields. Of course, there’s Black excellence in those industries, but when that’s the primary focus — particularly at a law firm which should be aware of, you know, the accomplishments of Black people in the LEGAL FIELD — the result merely reinforces stereotypical presumptions about Black people:
Black History Month, 2021 臘♀️ #WellBroughtUp Cc: @gowlingwlg_ca pic.twitter.com/3ln5Jc8VDH
— Joshua Sealy-Harrington (@JoshuaSealy) February 24, 2021
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When the completely tone-deaf, racist dog-whistle hit social media, the firm was quick(ish) to issue an apology:
We apologize for our screensaver message that appeared in this post. It does not reflect our values. The message has been taken down and we are reaching out to all of our people to listen to their perspectives and learn from this matter.
— Gowling WLG Canada (@gowlingwlg_ca) February 24, 2021
And as reported by Roll on Friday, the firm’s chair also made noises of contrition:
Andy Stylianou, Chairman of Gowling WLG UK LLP and the firm’s lead on diversity and inclusion, told RollOnFriday, “We are deeply sorry that a post that does not reflect our values appeared on an internal network in Canada yesterday”.
“Addressing systemic racism requires a collective effort and we actively encourage our colleagues to become allies” he said. “However, we recognise that we have more work to do to educate, upskill and empower them”.
RollOnFriday asked the firm whether Stylianou’s reference to “systemic racism” was an admission that Gowling WLG was racist, but a spokesperson clarified that he was “addressing systemic racism across society as a whole”.
Acknowledging the fuck-up is obviously the first step, but a lot more work and education needs to happen at Gowling WLG.
Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, and host of The Jabot podcast. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).