Navigate Finance as A Minority and Find Voice as An Agent for Change

Link to Event

In light of the recent Anti-Asian violence and hate incidents, we hosted a roundtable discussion on Wednesday, March 31st amongst Asian American women and Allies in finance to create a safe space for and shed light on the Asian American experience and how we all can show support and take action as agents of social change within our financial institutions and communities.

This discussion featured junior and senior women panelists from AAPI and multicultural backgrounds across the finance industry from Morgan Stanley, JPMorgan, and Citi as well as ex-bankers turned Food Tech CEO, VC Partners, and HBS/GSB candidates...(just to name a few!) to listen, support and strategize together to drive progress towards a more inclusive and equitable environment. Our goal was to help facilitate greater understanding of AAPI perspectives and for all multicultural women in this industry to feel empowered to bring these topics into the workplace and be an agent for social change, no matter her level.

One of the key take-aways from the event is that people want to know what actions they can take to support their AAPI colleagues. We took this opportunity to put together a starter kit of action items and resources. 

1) Reach Out & Check In: Ask your AAPI colleagues how you can help them feel more supported in the workplace.

• Do you want to take the day off to breathe?

• Would you feel seen if we made time in our team meeting to discuss what’s happening?

Are you feeling distracted? What tasks would you prefer to work on or have extra help from other team members right now?

2) Speak Up: Raise awareness amongst your peers, team or other company channels like HR, Leadership or DEI teams. 

• Check out this email template we put together to raise awareness here! 

3) Participate in DEI Initiatives: Join DEI network groups and get involved in recruiting and mentorship of diverse talent.

• There is a huge push for DEI in the finance industry today and most firms want to hear what you have to say! You can attend events, panels and discussions. 

4) Stay Current on Resources

• Act

  • How to be an Ally + How to Help Asians Fight Anti-Asian Racism 

  • How to support Asian American colleagues amid the recent wave of anti-Asian violence  

• Donate

  1. Donate directly to Go Fund Me fundraisers set up by victim families 

  2. Asian Americans Advancing Justice 

  3. Stop AAPI Hate Donation page 

• Trainings

  1. Hollaback Training

  2. The Asian American Racial Justice Toolkit

• Learn 

  1. Asia Society: Asian Americans Then and Now 

  2. National Partnership: Asian Women and the Wage Gap 

  3. Harvard Business Review: Asian Americans are Least Likely Group in the U.S to be Promoted to Management 

Feel free to share with your friends and colleagues if you found this starter kit helpful. We’d love to hear your feedback and keep the conversation going!