The Person You Mean to Be: How Good People Fight Bias

Part 2 centers on the theme of Debunking the Myth of Meritocracy and Combatting Privilege to Promote Social Justice. Chugh opens Chapter 4 with an anecdote about Kim Davis, a Black executive who attended a workshop for senior female executives. Most attendees were white. Kim approached three groups to introduce herself, but none acknowledged her presence. Chugh follows this anecdote with that of Joe Lentine, an Italian American man who ignored racial bias growing up in a white Detroit suburb. Joe became increasingly uncomfortable with his upbringing after befriending a Black fraternity brother, coming out as gay, and witnessing racism at General Motors (GM), where he was an executive. Joe left GM to work at his father’s dental insurance business, where most of his customers were minorities on Medicaid. As the company grew, Joe actively recruited workers who reflected the racial and ethnic makeup of his customers. He also began paying closer attention to the experiences of non-white people. To that end, he reprimanded a white employee who told a racist joke and asked her to speak to the Black coworker she offended. In short, Joe went from ignoring bias to taking an active stand against bias.