6 | Fall 2021 | BAEC Bulletin
Letter from the President Continued from previous page
are condemned to repeat it.” Although my racism is not intentional or conscious, unless I choose to act otherwise, my everyday decisions and activities serve to reinforce systems that operate in our society and community to the detriment of people of color, systems that benefit my family and me, while simultaneously harming people of color. When I evaluate my extremely fortunate life position in this light, a position that I fail most often even to recognize, I find that my options and decisions afford me three luxuries not available to most people of color: (1) Access -- I have access to virtually anything I need in life, either immediately or in a short period of time. There really is no meaningful problem that I could face which I could not solve myself or with available help. (2) Policy -- I participate, consciously sometimes but mostly unconsciously, in the making of policy which adversely affects people of color in ways which I am not always aware. Basic life choices serve to reinforce this system of white privilege. (3) Perpetuation -- my decisions and actions perpetuate the inequitable circumstances faced by people of color, perpetuate the discriminatory status quo. Just as I benefited, my children benefit. My every day choices have an impact on the lives of others. As a person of privilege and power, what do I do -- on a daily-basis -- that serves to perpetuate the subtle system of structural racism? What can I -- just one person who thinks he is doing the best he can to care and provide for his family -- do to change the system of white privilege? If the problem is so invasive and pervasive, should I even try to help? Any solution to the continuing problem of racism in our society necessarily requires a three-pronged attack: education, empathy, and action. The education cannot start soon enough. We must teach our children to celebrate diversity, to respect each individual, and to make decisions that do not serve to the detriment of others. The education has to begin with our children, but we all need it, maybe especially those of us who have been around for a while. Empathy is a cultural value that sadly too often seems lost. Be kind; listen; understand. Empathy, like education, requires a commitment and an open mind. Finally, Action: I suppose that is the hardest question.
What can we do? How should we act? How can we change our families, our intuitions, our governments -- the BAEC -- to begin the process of ending structural racism? That is the challenge I would propose. Many of us are racists. Where do we, who are structural racists, who benefit from white privilege, begin to address this problem, which is so sinister that our everyday, unconscious, almost reflexive actions perpetuate the problem? Wouldn’t it be easier for us to ignore the problem? Wouldn’t it be easier for me to go on living as I have always lived? But how can I disregard the reality of structural racism, especially when friends, family, partners, and colleagues do not acknowledge that it even exists? I do not start this discussion lightly. I expect that this letter will not endear me to all who read it. I fear that friends, colleagues, and clients may reject my efforts and even me, personally. To rewrite one’s personal history and worldview is beyond difficult. But I believe sending this letter to you, now, is the right thing to do. I know that this letter is provocative, and I recognize it will be controversial. I intend that it spurs discussion in our bar association and beyond. I welcome your responses. I envision creating a forum for a discussion of this painful issue, and I invite all to participate. We have to start somewhere.
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