The Problem of Invisibility

The Problem of Invisibility
originally appeared as
"Society's Nobodies Need Lawyers Too"
in the Philadelphia Bar Reporter,
Vol. 34, No. 10, October 2005, Page 19

Sharon Browning, Executive Director
Philadelphia VIP

Post-Hurricane Katrina relief and recovery efforts are well underway. The outpouring of help and offers of assistance, including those by lawyers, reveal the inherent goodness and compassion of Americans. Perhaps now, in the terrible aftermath of the storm but also in light of these demonstrations of kindness, we would do well to undertake some collective soul searching. How can such a tragedy happen here, in this country of wealth and opportunity, and as lawyers, what might we do to help avoid a similar catastrophe?

Much has been written of the 'invisibility' of low income, black residents of New Orleans and other affected areas. As a way both of breaking open this issue and of understanding the lessons it might hold for our profession, I offer the following vignette.

Several months ago, I was standing at a teller's window in a Center City bank, vaguely aware of the customer at the adjacent window completing his transaction and walking away. The teller who had just served this man turned to the teller at my window and muttered angrily under her breath..."Doesn't he even SEE ME? I'm a human being, for God's sake!"

She then looked at me, somewhat apologetically, and said. "It's mostly the lawyers.

They're the WORST!"

Let's be kind, and assume the best about the lawyers of whom the teller complained. Let's choose to believe that it's not outright rudeness, but rather, blindness that causes this behavior. Some people are simply invisible to us. It's not a great stretch to connect this story to the recent horrors following Katrina's wrath: the issue raised by the bank teller is precisely the issue raised by the needless suffering of so many who were simply not seen, not planned for, not valued. How can so many people living on the social margins in this country be absolutely invisible to those with greater resources and power?

We need to ask ourselves if there is something inherent in our training and practice that makes it almost inevitable that lawyers will be primary offenders when it comes to simply not seeing whole categories of people. As Benjamin Sells points out in his book, The Soul of Law, such flawed perception is at least partially caused by a well-established, nurtured, and firmly held belief in the value of hierarchy. Let's face it: dominance hierarchy is foundational to law. Consider both legal training and the linear structure of all of our legal institutions. And the higher we climb the professional ladder, the more distanced we become from the people at the bottom.

Frankly, this 'invisibility' is one of the reasons it is so difficult to get lawyers to take pro bono cases. Living, as we do at such vast geographic, social, and emotional distances from those whom the British call "the socially excluded," we don't 'see' them, and so do not perceive their needs, least of all their legal problems.

Robert Fuller elaborates on the negative social consequences of the hierarchical worldview in the book Somebodies and Nobodies, and as an antidote, suggests what he calls "dignitarianism," the recognition of the inherent, fundamental dignity of every human person, regardless of their status or credentials. Perhaps it is time for us to question our profession's reliance upon hierarchy as a key value, to embrace 'dignitarianism,' and to see, and value Everyone as Somebody in the law.

We're lawyers. We're supposed to be justice experts. A significant and meaningful way to honor the victims of Katrina would be to begin to live justly ourselves, to SEE those living on the social margins in Philadelphia. We don't need to look to the devastated southland to see the effects of structural, systemic poverty and racism. It's right here in Philadelphia every day, wreaking havoc with the lives of local residents, people who suffer from different, but equally devastating displacement and trauma.

But where to begin? How to start seeing? Each of us can ask ourselves, "Who are the Nobodies in my life, the people I simply don't see?" Low wage workers? Bank tellers? Mail room clerks? Fax technicians? Secretaries and receptionists? Waitresses? Food service and housekeeping staff? That vast, faceless group we term 'the poor'?

Give yourself a little quiz. Do you See everyone who works for your firm? Do you know if everyone employed by your firm is paid a living wage, defined as enough to rent a two bedroom apartment for a family of four? In Philadelphia, that means a minimum of $15 an hour.

Two suggestions:
Offer to take a pro bono case from one of the nineteen public interest organizations that need pro bono assistance. The outpouring of proffers of pro bono assistance for Katrina victims by Philadelphia lawyers is both staggering and heartening. But as Marsha Cohen of the Homeless Advocacy Project observed, if this good-hearted energy were captured and expressed locally on a regular basis, all of the public interest law organizations in Philadelphia would be rendered superfluous.

Or perhaps begin by ensuring a little justice even closer to home: See ALL persons as Somebodies, beginning with everyone in your firm's employ. Raises, anyone?

[Back to top]