"I entered [a university in Alberta] in the late seventies. I came back and obtained a law degree in 1991. I was the only black person in law school. Yet my experience was excellent. My professors were great and my classmates were great. I do not recall a single occasion that made me feel uncomfortable or made me feel like I was being treated differently because I am a visible minority. I have had my own law firm now for over twenty years, and I continue to feel blessed to live in [Alberta], and to be a Canadian. My colleagues treat me like I expect to be treated and judges I have come across, at all levels, are some of the nicest people that I have ever known. I know that visible minorities and new immigrants have not always felt welcome in [Alberta], but I do not believe that we continue to have any significant difficulties.

There will always be people who pick on other people who look different from them, and some of these people may even be lawyers or law students. However, my daily experience is that these negative encounters do not reflect where we are as a society. I hope that the discrimination felt by others are replaced by more pleasant memories..."

"...It is hard to read, every week, the ways we get held back professionally because of the colour of our skin. It’s 2021, we all have postsecondary degrees, and we’re STILL dealing with this. It’s tiring because it’s less our problem to overcome, and more yours. Yet, we’re the ones having the sleepless nights concerned about how your biased actions affect us, daily. It’s you that must figure out how to look at us and not immediately think 'Other'. Or, 'threat'. Or, 'not capable'. Or, 'not worthy of my time'. Or, 'uneducated'. Or, 'too much'. Or, 'too little'. Or, 'not a good personality fit'. Or, 'can’t let them get ahead'. Or, 'not on equal footing with that junior white associate who I grab beers with each week'. I could go on.

I experienced several discriminatory actions at one of my past firms, which was unsurprisingly made up of a full white leadership. In an increasingly “woke” era with experts, pundits, newspersons, scholars, educators, etc., recognizing, advertising, and advocating that racialized individuals live and work in your world and are marginalized, that firm doubled down on its commitment bias and favouritism. Troubling, given the era we are in. I left that firm after I realized that behind the scenes politics and politicians were determined to not let me have the same opportunities as my lateral colleagues. I left because I concluded that they were not my people, and unconscious bias would prevail there no matter how long I stayed. I am grateful for the catalyzing events that guided me out..."