WHAT BLACK LIVES MATTER MEANS FOR COMPLIANCE
This year has given us ample time to think and plenty to think about. A pandemic has upended the global economy. Political crises are trying the strength of our civic institutions. And in response to the killing of George Floyd by US police officers on 25 May 2020, millions around the world have taken part in demonstrations against systemic racism and police violence, categorically affirming that Black Lives Matter.
Careful attention to this movement suggests an important lesson for corporate compliance. Companies, in response to popular demand, have already amplified the movement’s core message by acknowledging the reality of systemic racism and committing to identify and address it within their own organisations. Consumers and investors will continue to scrutinise companies’ responses to popular sentiments and movements, and ultimately, companies with strong governance profiles will be better positioned for success.
And yet, observing the heightened awareness of black Americans’ underrepresentation in the mainstream discourse and subjection to police violence, it is reasonable to ask: why now? How was the death of George Floyd any different from the deaths of Philando Castile, Breonna Taylor, Samuel DuBose, Freddy Gray, Walter Scott, Tamir Rice, Eric Garner, Michael Brown and so many others, both known and unknown? What is different this time?
The US is facing a constitutional crisis in which white Americans recognise a fundamental threat to their own rights and liberties, perhaps more starkly than ever before. They have seen militarised police, masked and unidentified, disrupting protests with tear gas, shooting at protesters with rubber bullets, assaulting and arresting journalists, and removing people from the streets into unmarked vans without explanation or due process.
Oct-Dec 2020 Issue
TRACE