On
the
internet,
everyone
is
Black.
It’s
an
open
secret
that
the
practice
of
law
is
pretty
white.
Even
when
firms
have
a
diverse
makeup,
retention
can
pose
a
problem.
In
response,
companies
are
staring
to
offer
Diversity,
Equity,
and
Inclusion
training
that
should
assist
the
transition
in
interesting
ways.
Which
is
a
great
thing
—
just
make
sure
you
vet
your
trainers.
Have
you
ever
gotten
the
feeling
that
someone
doesn’t
really
understand
what
they’re
working
with?
Like
when
a
poet
laureate
makes
a
self-deprecating
joke
about
their
use
of
iambic
pentameter,
or
when
a
diversity
company
puts
their
white
employees
in
Blackface
for
like…
any
reason?
Mursion
is
a
tech
company
that
uses
virtual
reality
simulations
to
teach
racial
sensitivity
training
(read:
It
remains
a
profitable
business
model
to
tell
people
it’s
not
okay
to
be
racist
anymore).
You’d
think
such
a
company
would
act
in
a
way
that,
you
know,
takes
into
account
the
importance
of
diversity
and
equity
in
its
day-to-day
functioning.
Apparently
that
does
not
exclude
having
their
white
employees
roleplaying
and
speaking
as
African
Americans
as
part
of
their
9-5.
It’s
not
like
they’re
doing
something
wrong
or
anything.
When
asked
about
the
practice,
Mursion
responded
that:
“[O]pen
casting”
is
necessary
to
scale
its
business
and
to
protect
employees
of
color
from
having
to
just
endlessly
replay
“the
same
cultural
biases,
microaggressions,
and
outright
discrimination
in
our
society
that
too
many
Americans
suffer
today.”
How
kind
of
them
to
think
on
behalf
of
their
Black
employees
instead
of,
I
don’t
know,
hiring
more
Black
talent?
And
doesn’t
it
feel
a
little
colorblind
to
suggest
that
white
actors
are
familiar
enough
with
“the
cultural
biases,
microaggressions,
and
outright
discrimination”
in
our
society
faced
by
the
Black
folks
they’re
roleplaying?
If
it
were
that
easy
to
step
into
another’s
shoes,
would
we
really
need
the
company
to
provide
its
services?
But
what
do
I
know?
As
long
as
the
imitators
are
well
informed,
I’m
sure
the
difference
is
negligible.
“This
Is
Blackface”:
White
Actors
Are
Playing
Black
Characters
In
Virtual
Reality
Diversity
Training
[Buzzfeed
News]
Earlier:
HR
Departments
Are
Now
Doing
Any%
Diversity
Speed
Runs
Chris
Williams
became
a
social
media
manager
and
assistant
editor
for
Above
the
Law
in
June
2021.
Prior
to
joining
the
staff,
he
moonlighted
as
a
minor
Memelord™
in
the
Facebook
group Law
School
Memes
for
Edgy
T14s.
Before
that,
he
wrote
columns
for
an
online
magazine
named
The
Muse
Collaborative
under
the
pen
name Knehmo.
He
endured
the
great
state
of
Missouri
long
enough
to
graduate
from
Washington
University
in
St.
Louis
School
of
Law.
He
is
a
former
boatbuilder
who
cannot
swim, a
published
author
on
critical
race
theory,
philosophy,
and
humor,
and
has
a
love
for
cycling
that
occasionally
annoys
his
peers.
You
can
reach
him
by
email
at cwilliams@abovethelaw.com and
by
tweet
at @WritesForRent.