9373: Questioning Where Are All The Black People?

Watching videos of the “Where Are All The Black People?” event—where candidates were given three minutes to sell themselves—makes one wonder about a number of things.

First, how many Whites currently employed on Madison Avenue would be able to pass a similar test?

Second, were actual jobs available? It would be nice in the future if there were specific roles that candidates could prepare and pitch themselves for. Like it or not, employers today are seeking to fill defined positions. Few agencies have “blue-sky” openings.

Third, what would have happened if senior-level candidates had shown up en masse? Finding juniors to audition is easy, especially when considering the unemployment rate for Black teens is as high as 41 percent. Flash mob tactics could have been used to get young jobseekers to show up. The dearth of diversity in our industry is most prevalent in the mid- to senior-level ranks.

Fourth, can the next “Where Are All The Black People?” extravaganza turn the tables? Hand a mic to the White executives and instruct them to spend three minutes sharing their perspectives on diversity. Tell the audience what they have done to foster inclusion, and how they have personally fought to end exclusivity. It would likely be a major challenge for any of them to even manage to fill three seconds.

Congratulations and kudos to all the courageous candidates.