Female Superiors
I am a rising 2L and anxiety about upcoming fall recruiting is in full swing at my office this summer. A few days ago, we were discussing how to avoid discrimination by finding female-friendly firms. Someone suggested looking at what the female/male partner ratio is and one woman piped in that she would never want to work for a female partner. I have heard this statement once before. Both women went to law school straight from college and have never held a full-time job, let alone had the opportunity to work with either a male or female boss on a daily basis. So how do they decide to make this resolution? Is there something I'm missing?
Both times I was stunned to silence (rare for me) and my perception of them was permanently damaged. How can women fight stereotypes and discrimination, when our brightest and most ambitious young women are attacking the most successful women.
I don't understand where this comes from and whether or not it is limited to these two young women or if it is common. I have worked in several different offices, including law offices, and have had male and female bosses that were horrible and terrific.
Any ideas on how to respond without attacking her, if this ever comes up again? (hopefully, it won't)
- Login or register to post comments
- Email this page
_0.jpg "Kirkland & Ellis LLP")
Comments
Can you ask why?
First, I've also heard this accusation before. The theory seems to be that either 1) women have to work harder to get/stay where they are, which means that they require more from those they are supervising and/or have less time to mentor than a male partner of equal standing would because they have less time and more pressure or 2) women think back on how hard it was for them to get where they are and view this difficulty as some sort of hazing ritual (almost as if they resent that it might be easier for upcoming women attorneys and don't want to contribute to that smoother ride since they after all didn't have anyone help them and were able to succeed) or 3) women are threatened by other women because of the view that leadership and positions of power for women are scarce and finite, so if they help a woman to succeed, that woman might somehow challenge their position.
These attitudes are clearly all wrong (except the first maybe because women do seem to have to work harder and might be more exacting bosses, but why is it a bad thing to work for someone who demands your best?). The more women who get ahead, the more places there are for women, especially if women who succeed help the women who come next.
I've had really supportive female mentors, both at my firm and at law school. I've also run across women lawyers who weren't interested in mentoring me, but there have been men who haven't wanted to mentor me either. Maybe there's something wrong with the expectation that all women have a duty to mentor other women or show them favorable treatment just because they are women?
In terms of your experience ARG, can you ask the women you were talking with why they have that perception? Maybe in hearing what they have to say, you could have a conversation and point out any generalizations they might be making, or you could talk about your own positive experience with women mentors. In my experience, when I'm trying to influence someone's opinion, the best approach isn't to tell them that they're wrong but rather to let them realize for themselves that they might be mistaken by pointing out (discreetly) flaws in their reasoning. Isn't that what lawyers are best at?