This
is
the
story
we
hoped
wouldn’t
happen,
but
let’s
be
honest
—
of
course
it
did.
It
was
always
going
to
happen.
Between
the
administration
publicly
threatening
criminal
action
against
private
sector
companies
over
diversity
initiatives
and
law
firms
rushing
to
curry
favor
with
the
White
House,
it
was
only
a
matter
of
time
before
a
Biglaw
firm
tried
to
memory-hole
prior
diversity,
equity,
and
inclusion
efforts.
As
we’ve
monitored
Biglaw
websites
over
the
couple
weeks
since
Trump
returned
to
power,
we
took
heart
every
time
we
noticed
that
a
major
firm
still
hadn’t
tried
to
subtly
purge
its
public-facing
site
of
any
mention
of
diversity.
Unfortunately,
though
perhaps
inevitably,
the
legal
community
is
no
longer
pitching
a
perfect
game.
Let’s
play
a
game
of
Photo
Hunt!
Here’s
a
screenshot
of
the
K&L
Gates
website
today:
Can
you
spot
the
difference
from
this
image
captured
on
January
30
from
the
Wayback
Machine:
Yes,
the
“The”
is
missing!
But
probably
more
importantly
the
“Our
Commitment
to
Diversity”
link
at
the
top
of
the
whole
page.
While
this
was
the
only
major
change
to
the
homepage,
the
deletions
and
heavy
edits
didn’t
stop
there.
Over
on
the
“About”
page,
the
December
19,
2024,
version
of
the
website
looked
like
this:
This
morning’s
version
of
the
About
page
looks
like
this:
And
the
changes
aren’t
limited
to
word
choices.
The
entire
“Diversity
and
Inclusion”-turned-“Opportunity
and
Inclusion”
page
has
changed.
The
old
website
included
visual
representations
backing
up
the
firm’s
commitment.
For
example:
The
accomplishments
of
these
attorneys
are
now
deleted.
The
page
still
offers
general
statements
about
inclusion,
but
any
specific
claims
about
individual
achievements
are
gone,
hiding
from
public
view
any
way
to
measure
the
firm’s
success
in
this
area.
The
page
also
linked
to
“a
robust
educational
toolkit”
developed
by
the
firm
and
a
block
set
off
in
all
caps
recognizing
that
“WE
PLEDGE
TO
FOLLOW
THE
MANSFIELD
RULE.”
And
for
what?
If
firms
think
scrubbing
diversity
efforts
will
shield
them,
they
should
ask
Target
how
that
worked
out.
The
retail
giant
backtracked
on
its
public
DEI
commitments
—
only
to
get
sued
by
Trump’s
fellow
travelers
anyway.
These
people
won’t
be
satisfied
until
the
entire
workforce
looks
like
a
1950s
country
club.
It
undermines
firm
culture
for
nothing.
Even
the
Diversity
and
Inclusion
Committee
has
been
scrubbed.
Now
rebranded
as
the
Opportunity
and
Inclusion
Committee
and
its
mission
statement
reads…
a
little
differently.
By
way
of
comparison,
this
is
the
old
description:
These
global
committees
oversee
robust
budgets
and
our
employee
resource
groups
(ERGs),
which
include
groups
for
women
lawyers;
LGBT
employees
and
allies;
lawyers
of
color;
working
parents;
veterans;
and
lawyers
with
disabilities.
These
groups
spearhead
programs
ranging
from
women’s
business
mentorship
training
in
Portland
and
promoting
mental
health
awareness
in
London
and
Melbourne,
to
assisting
transgender
individuals
with
name
changes
in
Melbourne,
Pittsburgh
and
Sydney.
And
this
is
the
new
description:
These
global
committees
oversee
robust
budgets
and
our
taskforces,
which
include
groups
that
explore
ways
to
best
support
and
utilize
the
unique
and
various
perspectives
of
the
professionals
within
our
community
that
contribute
to
the
overall
success
of
the
firm
and
our
clients.
Erasing
“women
lawyers;
LGBT
employees
and
allies;
lawyers
of
color;
working
parents;
veterans;
and
lawyers
with
disabilities”
seems
significant.
In
a
different
submenu,
the
site
continues
to
identify
a
“Women
in
the
Profession
Committee,
Opportunity
&
Inclusion
Committee,
LGBTQ+
Subcommittee,
Disability
Inclusion
Taskforce,
and
Veterans
Taskforce”
but
at
the
top
level,
these
specific
issues
are
scrubbed
into
vague
generalities.
As
an
aside,
there’s
a
sad
comedy
watching
conservatives
on
social
media
angrily
pushback
against
the
idea
that
“DEI”
ever
meant
working
parents,
or
veterans,
or
folks
with
disabilities.
The
whole
term
was
a
mostly
corporate
buzz
effort
to
lump
numerous
inclusion
efforts
under
the
same
administrative
roof,
but
conservatives
are
adamant
that
this
can’t
be
true.
Because
regardless
of
every
DEI
mission
statement
ever
written,
they
just
wanted
it
to
be
a
socially
acceptable
way
to
use
racial
slurs.
As
the
new
website
says,
“We
will
continue
to
listen,
learn,
and
work
together
to
build
a
culture
where
everyone
is
welcome,
included,
and
has
the
opportunity
to
demonstrate
their
skills.”
I’d
be
interested
to
hear
what
they’re
hearing
and
learning
after
these
edits.
Frankly,
I’d
be
interested
to
hear
what
the
Committee
had
to
say
about
these
changes
in
the
first
place
—
or
if
they
were
even
consulted.
We
contacted
the
firm
for
comment
and
haven’t
heard
back.
That
said,
this
is
one
of
those
stories
where
the
firm
can’t
really
explain
away
the
impact
of
the
documents
on
their
face
and
the
impression
it
gives
to
an
outside
reader
—
and
even
more
so
to
an
inside
reader
working
as
an
attorney
or
staff
member.
That’s
why
nothing
is
“cosmetic”
when
talking
about
this
work.
It’s
all
a
series
of
signals
up
and
down
the
firm
hierarchy
and
out
toward
clients.
Giving
the
firm
the
benefit
of
the
doubt,
leadership
likely
expects
the
committee
and
the
firm
as
a
whole
to
maintain
business
as
usual.
They
probably
would
argue
that
these
are
purely
“cosmetic”
changes
and
they
remain
committed
to
these
causes
even
if
they’ve
pushed
that
commitment
to
harder-to-find
corners
of
the
site.
But
when
we’re
talking
about
inclusion,
shunting
people
and
their
accomplishments
off
to
the
side
is
the
problem.
The
whole
point
is
to
build
a
workplace
where
traditionally
marginalized
or
otherwise
overlooked
people
feel
like
they’re
part
of
the
team.
When
an
employer
signals
that
they’re
afraid
to
publicly
acknowledge
women
and
minorities
and
LGBT
folks
and
every
other
employee
covered
by
the
diversity,
equity,
and
inclusion
umbrella,
that’s
ballgame.
The
trust
is
fractured,
and
the
message
is
clear:
diversity
is
fine,
just
as
long
as
no
one
can
see
it.
Joe
Patrice is
a
senior
editor
at
Above
the
Law
and
co-host
of
Thinking
Like
A
Lawyer.
Feel
free
to email
any
tips,
questions,
or
comments.
Follow
him
on Twitter or
Bluesky
if
you’re
interested
in
law,
politics,
and
a
healthy
dose
of
college
sports
news.
Joe
also
serves
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Managing
Director
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Executive
Search.