"Every system is perfectly designed to produce the results it is producing"

If you are as sickened and outraged by the events that have occurred during the past week in our country as I am, you are spending some time this weekend thinking, how did we get here, and hopefully, what can I do to be a positive force for change?

As saddened as I am to see the passion and rage from people of color and those who support us, pour out into the streets, I must say I am not surprised. The economic boom that has been enjoyed by those of us who have been privileged to benefit from a system that has provided us with abundance, has also created an ever widening gap between the life we lead and those who are similarly disadvantaged by the same system. 

You need only look at the outcomes of the COVID-19 pandemic to see how incredibly inequitable our lives have become.  According to a non-partisan APM Research Lab study, COVID-19 is killing African Americans at a rate that is ~three times higher than white people. For example, data from state reporting suggests that in Michigan, black people make up 14% of the state’s population, but account for 41% of coronavirus deaths. In Illinois, black people make up 14% of the population, but account for 32.5% of coronavirus deaths, and in Louisiana, where black people make up about 33% of the population, Gov. John Bel Edwards said in early April they account for more than 70% of the state’s coronavirus deaths.

The data are similar when comparing how minorities and people of color are impacted economically. The economic toll of COVID-19 has been hardest on the lowest earners and most vulnerable in our society. Even in good times, African American unemployment is usually about double that of white Americans. During the pandemic, that gap has narrowed, which may appear to be a good thing, but is actually due to the over-representation of blacks who hold the lowest paying jobs in the economy (mail carriers, fast food workers, health care auxiliary staff, etc.) which ironically are the ones we deem  “essential” to keeping our society afloat during the crisis.

If you study your history, you will find that this type of hopeless disparity is the key driver behind most revolutions. Seeing anger and outrage pour out into our streets when another black man is killed senselessly on video, is to me, an expected result that was going to happen sooner or later.

So what do you and I do? 

I submit that the time for thoughts and prayers, or passively caring by expressing outrage on social media or talking to friends about how terrible things are, is behind us. If you are not actively looking to make changes to the system that is producing these results, you are complicit with the results it is producing. 

That is a difficult statement to say, and even harder to hear, as many of us benefit greatly from having things stay the way they are. During times like today when we are all saddened and frustrated with what we see as a broken system, we need to look in the mirror and ask ourselves how much we really care to see a different result. I believe it’s time to admonish those of us who are passively supporting this inequality as much as those who actively work to further the divide. 

A lot of people want to care actively, and truly believe that the status quo is not acceptable, but don’t really know how or what to do about it. 

Here are a few tangible ways to make a real difference. The list is nowhere near comprehensive, but at least it provides some ideas that each of us can do to make the gap between our lives and those who are struggling, a tiny bit more narrow:

1) VOTE!

As I’ve written previously, I believe that discrimination due to racial, gender, sexual orientation, etc. differences needs to be a litmus test issue. Candidates who are not committed to basic human equality need to be voted out, regardless of how much we agree with them on other issues. America has a long history of forgiving monstrous behavior in favor of supporting those who benefit our economic and social status quo. If you want the system to change, this has to end. 

If you want to care even more actively, work to help those who are disempowered to register and vote easily so that they have a voice. The system has tried and true methods to keep those who are most vulnerable from being able to vote as easily as you and me. As recently as last month, some voters had to wait in line 2.5 hours in the urban sections of Milwaukee in order to cast a vote, because of closure of voting sites in their area. How many of you would wait 2.5 hours to vote? I wouldn’t. No one should have to. This is not what our democracy is about. 

2) Hire

Many of us are walking examples of the American dream. We have great jobs, and have been given the chance to compete and succeed in the greatest industry in the world. For many of our brothers and sisters in underserved communities, access to the same dream is simply not available. Every time you hire from the same schools, from the same referral sources, using the same system, you are perpetuating the income gap that purportedly causes you so much frustration. Here are some tangible ways to break the cycle, and narrow the gap:

a) For every intern you hire from a family friend or colleague, from your alma mater, or from the usual ways you find young talent, add one person of color, or person from an underserved socio-economic community to fill a similar role. Each time privilege and contacts are used to perpetuate the system, break the cycle by allowing someone in who would not have access otherwise.

b) Mentor one person. In this time of virtual connections, this is as easy as it has ever been. Just find the time to connect with one person, electronically and voice to voice. Help them to understand your journey, and give them access to the same privilege that you provide to those who are currently in your circle of family, friends and colleagues. If you need help finding someone, Life Science Cares can help.

c) Find talent everywhere. As a proud graduate of Cal State Los Angeles, I am always a little pissed with the assumptions that the only smart people are those who go to the “top” schools. There is no question that students who attend the “top” schools are bright and worked their butt off to get there, but to assume that kids who are at state schools, community colleges, etc. are not as bright or talented is an absolute fallacy. If the hiring system of your company relies on school brand as the proxy for whether young people are smart and talented enough to succeed in your company, you are perpetuating the system of inequality that exists today. To stop it, you need to change that system by allowing access to your jobs to those students from the non-branded schools who are not only just as smart, but who have proven to have the grit that correlates well to success in virtually all fields.

d) Add a parallel hiring process. If your current system for hiring women and people of color is not producing the diversity that should be demonstrated in your workforce, don’t try and completely change your current system, add a new one. I often hear as a reason for continuing the same hiring practices that it would take too much time, effort and money to completely revamp the way talent is brought into the organization. I get it. Keep the process you have in place, but add one or two unique activities that are specifically designed to offer opportunities to those who have little access to your jobs. (For a list of ideas, check out this previous blog.)

Promote

Every one of us had someone, or likely numerous people, who were willing to take a chance on us when we likely didn’t really deserve it. It is easiest to do that when the person we are entrusting is so similar to us that we see ourselves in them. While that is completely understandable, it maintains the status quo. To see real change, find one person who is different from you in your professional circle, and be their benefactor. This could mean advocating for their professional advancement, approving their project even though you’re not sure it will succeed, or standing up for them when they are being treated (consciously or unconsciously) unfairly.

Educate

The disparity between how students of color and white students are educated is a cornerstone of the current system, and no tool is as effective in reducing the income gap than making high quality education more accessible. There are numerous programs, schools and organizations whose mission is to help students from underserved populations have access to quality education. Support them. Instead of giving your economic abundance to the schools and organizations that already have overflowing resources, (Harvard has a $41B endowment!) direct them to those that don’t, and those who are educating students who need a bridge to cross this divide. Instead of joining in the fund raising effort at your kids’ private school to build the next new gymnasium or library, how about giving to an organization that makes private school education accessible to a student who could never experience it otherwise. THAT creates a new system.

 Engage

*****WARNING, WARNING….SHAMELESS PLUG AHEAD******

Signing petitions is nice. Writing checks from your surplus is even better. Caring actively requires more than this. 

If you really want to change the “system”, you must engage. Find an organization that seeks to make real change and get your hands dirty. This will look different for all of us depending on where we are in life, but this is not the time to remain on the sidelines cheering. All of us have to get on the field and do something, anything, that creates positive change. 

Our mission at Life Science Cares, in Boston and in Philadelphia, is to be a vehicle for our industry to do just that. We know that the people in our industry are extraordinary, and care deeply about humanity. We also realize that these extraordinary people are super busy, with their careers and with life, and likely don't have the time to seek out the perfect organization that is worthy of their time and treasure. 

If that is you, and you really want change, give us a call or drop us a note. We will work tirelessly to connect you to an organization that will not only satisfy your desire to change the system, but also make a meaningful impact on those who that same system has left behind. 

If you already have a way to engage, terrific! Give it as much of your energy as you can muster, and encourage others to do the same. If you have other ideas on how folks can care actively, please post a comment to this blog, tag me in a twitter note on your suggestion, or somehow make your ideas heard. There is no better time than the present to change the world, and no better reminder than this week that it really needs changing.

Thanks for listening.

R