Our Antiracism Plan
At Seyfarth, 2020 was a journey of awareness, education, and learning. We made an important commitment to education and awareness because we cannot effectively engage in long term change without it. In the aftermath of the death of George Floyd in 2020, we set in place a multifaceted plan to support our Black colleagues, and to take concrete steps to combat racism.
Communication. Our forward movement is collaborative. Our firm Chair Pete Miller and Chief Inclusion Officer, Kori S. Carew, Esq. led efforts to ensure our commitment to antiracism was strongly affirmed. The firm employed numerous layers of outreach to Black and brown colleagues including our Diversity and Inclusion Action Team, Affinity Group Chairs, and Seyfarth leaders.
Town Hall Meetings. The firm hosted three town hall meetings to process the events, the underlying racial inequity, the resulting trauma, our roles as change agents and allies, and how we protect the inclusion and diversity we value. These events were open to both attorneys and staff, who attended in record numbers. Each town hall hall meeting had a specific theme to explore and unpack racism.
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"The Unfinished Work on Race in America" with guest speaker Priscilla Ocen, a Professor of Law at Loyola Law School, where she teaches criminal law, family law and a seminar on race, gender and the law. Her work examines the relationship between race, gender and systems of punishment. Professor Ocen along with a panel of Seyfarthians discussed a number of topics including the context and history of race in America, the experiences of Black and other racial minority communities, allyship, and anti-racist behaviors that dismantle racist systems.
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"Using the Lens of Othering & Belonging for Lasting Change" with guest speaker dr. john a. powell, an internationally recognized expert in the areas of civil rights, civil liberties, structural racism, housing, poverty, and democracy. john is the Director of the Othering & Belonging Institute at the University of California, Berkeley, a research institute that brings together scholars, community advocates, communicators, and policymakers to identify and eliminate the barriers to an inclusive, just, and sustainable society and to create transformative change toward a more equitable. Participants in this panel explored why we shy away from tough subjects like white supremacy and racism and, therefore, do not move forward on the work of anti-racism and racial equity. The framework of belonging and othering offers a path to understanding racism, including anti-Black racism, and how we can move forward in ways we have not for decades.
- "Race, Gender, Culture and Those Left Behind" with guest speaker Michele Coleman Mayes, Vice President, General Counsel and Secretary at The New York Public Library, responsible for guiding NYPL's legal strategy to enable the Library to achieve its mission. In this panel, participants explored the intersection of race and gender, unpacking the way systemic racism impacts women of color and how and why the legal profession has left women of color behind with women of color equity partners being only at 2.27% and Black women equity partners being less than 1%.
Training. Our leaders recieved toolkits on leading inclusively during this time. Information on being allies and understanding race in America is available to every employee on our firm intranet. Members of our Inclusion team are available to leadership to answer questions and discuss inclusive leadership competencies.
Check-in with Black professionals. In the immediate aftermath of the death of George Floyd, we held a check-in webinar with our Black professionals at Seyfarth. It was a time of community, healing and processing with guest speaker Dr. Angela Neal-Barnett from Kent University, a professor, psychologist, and author. Our colleagues were grateful for this chance to commune in a safe space together.
Community Service. Pro Bono and Inclusion and Diversity continually explore opportunities to collaborate on pro bono and community service. These discussions are still underway as we explore and research what is available and what is a good fit for the firm. As an immediate action step, we were among the first to join the Law Firm Antiracism Alliance, which will connect the firm with specific pro bono opportunities related to racial justice.
I&D Action Plan. As we pivoted our action plan for Inclusion & Diversity in response to COVID-19, we continually examined our I&D strategy and action plan to ensure we addressed issues and concerns that have arose from the death of George Floyd and ensuing reckoning with long term systemic racism.
Mental Health Benefits. Seyfarth offers numerous programs to support the physical and mental health of our colleagues through the trauma of 2020. There are also several mental health benefits available for employees and immediate family, all of which can be used confidentially including Spring Health, Health Advocate and Blue Cross Blue Shield.