You Don't Look Like a Lawyer: Black Women and Systemic Gendered Racism

by Tsedale M. Melaku

You Don't Look Like a Black Women and Systemic Gendered Racism highlights how race and gender create barriers to recruitment, professional development, and advancement to partnership for black women in elite corporate law firms. Utilizing narratives of black female lawyers, this book offers a blend of accessible theory to benefit any reader willing to learn about the underlying challenges that lead to their high attrition rates. Drawing from narratives of black female lawyers, their experiences center around gendered racism and are embedded within institutional practices at the hands of predominantly white men. In particular, the book covers topics such as appearance, white narratives of affirmative action, differences and similarities with white women and black men, exclusion from social and professional networking opportunities and lack of mentors, sponsors and substantive training. This book highlights the often-hidden mechanisms elite law firms utilize to perpetuate and maintain a dominant white male system. Weaving the narratives with a critical race analysis and accessible writing, the reader is exposed to this exclusive elite environment, demonstrating the rawness and reality of black women’s experiences in white spaces. Finally, we get to hear the voices of black female lawyers as they tell their stories and perspectives on working in a highly competitive, racialized and gendered environment, and the impact it has on their advancement and beyond.

Genres: Sociology

237 pages, Kindle Edition

Published April 18, 2019

Reviews

[NV · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book isn’t even that long, but it has taken me more than half a year to read. Sometimes, I don’t know why I do this to myself. Read hard truths I don’t need to be told about because I live them daily.

[Lovaeta Amoako · Rating 4 out of 5]

This book sheds light on the prevalence of systemic gendered racism in elite corporate law firms but is relevant to other sectors of the workforce as well. Reading about the lived experiences of each black female lawyer aides in portraying the stark injustices, limitations, and battles that people of color have to face on a consistent basis. The book uses and explains sociological theories in a manner that is very reader friendly. I recommend this book even if you do not work in the corporate field and/or are a person of color.

[Jay Gabler · Rating 5 out of 5]

A detailed, important study of intersectionality in a professional setting.

[RYAN PHAM · Rating 4 out of 5]

Laminated cover

Interesting look into black female lawyers and how they don’t fit in at white law firms

[Susan · Rating 4 out of 5]

In a year of controversy over schools teaching Critical Race Theory, here is an example of CRT and the results of research by a sociologist who compares black lawyers, black male lawyers, black female lawyer, white lawyers, white female lawyers, and white male lawyers to determine levels of discrimination in advancing up the ranks of law firms. It is unsurprising that black female lawyers suffer the most discrimination --the author does not just make this statement but proves it with reserach, charts, studies, etc. Read this for the OGC book club

[versarbre]

quick skimming via Google books
"Why are there still so few black female partners?"
invisible labor in white professional spaces = inclusion tax (dollars spent in the beauty salon to conform to Euro-centric aesthetics, enduring misogynistic & racist comments, etc.)

[Penny L. · Rating 5 out of 5]

great review of the polarization

Still a good ole boys club…research number of black judges who are block women in places like Arizona and the stark realities right in your face!

[IquoImoh Terry · Rating 4 out of 5]

The in depth interviews brought the experience that black women experience in the legal system to life. When will women of color in the professional world be looked at as equal? Thank you for this book it should be a requirement in law school.