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“If You Don’t Know How, Learn.” Lessons from A Million Miles Away
Last week after an especially jolting 5k (pro tip: don’t decide to run a 5k and then fail to train when you have asthma), I decided to take it easy for the day and watch A Million Miles Away. oh. my. god. I was a sobbing mess. It’s a must see, if you’re Latino, if you feel connected to migrant farmworkers and their story, or if you simply want to see a story about perseverance and determination. AMMA is a biopic of the first Latino to go into space, Jose Hernandez. He grew up as a migrant child farmworker, earned a degree in engineering and went on to join NASA,…
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Who’s the Daddy? Managing Clients
So there’s so much to discuss when it comes to the #SohoKaren situation and let me say emphatically her behavior may have stemmed from a lot of issues, but the most troubling one is the racism. Y punto. But what I want to talk about here is her hat. Ok, not just the daddy hat, but everything that led to an interview with a daddy hat and the importance of client management. Managing clients, especially difficult ones, is a skill set we must develop sooner rather than later. A common misconception is that we say yes to every client whim, but that is a disservice to the client. While we…
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Play to Win: Using Respectability Politics as a Tool
I think one of the biggest things I struggle with here is how much I seem to push assimilation and accepting business norms. I dislike that I do it because when we abide by certain business norms set by those in power, we may end up believing (or portraying to others) that those norms are better than our own cultural standards. Or worse, we fall into a trap of believing that we’ll be accepted by those in power. I try to find a balance of discussing how most norms and ideals are created and enforced to advance those in power while at the same time, I take up a lot…
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What Are You Doing For Others?
I am writing this in a mood I wasn’t expecting. I received news this morning that a beloved professor from my undergrad has passed away. When we stop and think about teachers that make a difference in our lives, this professor basically helped form how I approached discussing issues of race and gender. I’ve spoken about it before, but he so succinctly and clearly explained to me why it was important for me to speak up and I never shied away from taking a stand after that moment. A fleeting moment for him, I’m sure, but for me, it validated my experiences and concerns. I could go on and on,…
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What Will You Do To Get In? And What Will You Do Once You’re There?
I saw this image on Instagram and thought it was a good visual for how we need to be in order to create change in the legal field. We have to abide by the standards and customs to be admitted, but then once we’re in we have to do our best to become agents of change—big and small. I talk a lot about work culture, following cues, and finding ways to fit into work so that you can advance in your career. I do this knowing that there are some people ready to go in and create change by pointing out all the internal injustices that are wrong with our…
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Affirmative Action, Feminism, & Me
In 2003, I was in high school, when the Supreme Court decided Grutter v. Bollinger--a case discussing race as a factor in college admissions. I remember being in my AP government class with a conservative, white, male teacher who didn’t hold back on how incorrect it was to take race into account. And so most students agreed with him. The class was small, maybe 12. I remember only one or two students, aside from me being in support of Affirmative Action. I remember, a white girl next to me who made a crying sound, implying that students of color complaining about diversity were being whiny babies. I was the only…
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Deciding on Appropriate Interview Attire.
On Monday we talked about preparing for your summer applications. Now let’s talk about looking the part during your interviews. The look you’re going for, regardless of the legal sector (private, public, government, etc) is: conservative. And the only real rule that applies to everyone, is that you have to wear a suit. Other than that, I’m a huge believer that as long as you look presentable, professional, and clean-that’s all that matters. Too bad I don’t run the world… In reality, there are a lot more “rules” imposed on women and how we should dress when interviewing. If you want to truly play it safe, most schools will…