"Listen up, you pale bozo, I can see right through your bullshit, you're threatened by smart people who don't look like you, well, buddy, you can kiss my fat ass," Fariha Jasmine Dinga said haughtily as she glared at her former boss, criminal division junior partner Luke Stanwood. The short, skinny white guy in the dark business suit swallowed hard, and seemed like he was about to say something, but before he could open his lips, Fariha left in a huff, heading straight for the elevators.
Fariha Jasmine Dinga, a ( soon-to-be-former ) talented attorney-at-law in the criminal division of the law firm of Winters, Dale & Stone, took a few calming breaths as she all but punched the number one button on the elevator. Fortunately, the elevator got off the seventeenth floor before any of her soon-to-be former co-workers could approach it. Closing her eyes hard, Fariha forced herself to be calm. This had to be done, she thought to herself.
Born in the City of Boston, Massachusetts, to a Cameroonian Muslim immigrant father and a white American mother, Fariha Jasmine Dinga was bred for ambition from the get go. Her father Karim Dinga, who used to be a mathematics teacher in the family's ancestral hometown of Bafoussam, northwestern Cameroon, stressed on the young Fariha the importance of a good education and ambition as keys to success anywhere in the world.
"My dear Fariha, in the United States of America, even though there's a lot of racism, a black person who is smart can still reach amazing heights, like Governor Deval Patrick, or President Barack Obama," Karim said to his blushing daughter Fariha as he embraced her at her graduation from Suffolk University Law School. It was a bright sunny day in late June 2010, and the 25-year-old Fariha was positively glowing.
Indeed, Fariha and her father Karim Dinga stood out among the overwhelmingly white crowd of attendees at this special event. Standing six feet tall, athletic but curvy, with caramel-hued skin and a stylized Afro which her graduation cap struggled to cover, Fariha was certainly quite a sight. Passers-by gawked at her, and Fariha smiled, for she was used to people staring at her.
The young woman looked at her father, a short, stocky black man with silvery hair and a continuously animated face, clad in a dark gray suit. This was the man who raised her alone since her mother Mariah Quinn's death many years prior. The old man was practically glowing with pride, and Fariha felt tears of joy stream down her face. This was indeed one of life's special moments, and Fariha thanked her lucky stars that her old man was around to share it with her.
"Amen to that, Papa," Fariha said as she hugged her father, and then the two of them drove back to their house in Brockton, Massachusetts, where Fariha's aunt Fatima and cousins awaited. Fariha smiled sadly as she reminisced about those halcyon days, days when life was good, and everything seemed possible. Of course, this was before Fariha was recruited by the prestigious and at times infamous law firm of Winters, Dale & Stone.
Founded in the summer 1968 by Harvard Law School chums David Winters, Anderson Dale and Tyson Stone, the firm, now housed on Boylston Street, in the heart of Boston, is synonymous with power in the Boston legal scene. When the firm first approached her, Fariha was surprised, considering that she was fresh out of law school and trying not to think about the mountain of debt she owed to the good folks of Suffolk University.
"We at Winters, Dale & Stone definitely need vibrant young minds like yours, my dear," said the recruiter, a tall, attractive and well-dressed black man in his late fifties. Fariha didn't know it at the time but this gentleman was Tyson Jerome Stone, one of the firm's co-founders, and its most active senior partner since of the others retired. The man had been on the cover of Black Enterprise, Newsweek, and The Improper Bostonian. Fariha looked at Mr. Stone, smiled and nodded, overwhelmed.
"Wow, sir, I don't know what to say," Fariha said, and Mr. Stone chuckled. This whole thing felt surreal for Fariha, who wore a tank top and sweatpants as she greeted the tall, well-dressed older black gentleman who showed up at her house door, briefcase in hand, looking all official. Mr. Stone was offering Fariha the opportunity of a lifetime, one she was glad to take.
After Mr. Stone's impromptu visit, Fariha Dinga did her homework on the law firm of Winters, Dale & Stone. The firm had over a thousand employees, and its headquarters at 500 Boylston Street in downtown Boston, Massachusetts, were indeed massive. They apparently had a branch in the City of Atlanta, Georgia, and another one in the City of Dallas, Texas. Talk about widespread...
"Welcome to the big leagues," said Mr. Stone as he showed Fariha Dinga her new office, on the seventeenth floor. Fariha, dressed in a stylish dark gray pantsuit, tried not to gawk at the fact that her new office was bigger than her bedroom. The young Cameroonian-American lawyer's first visit to the firm definitely overwhelmed her. There were lawyers everywhere, along with paralegals and assistants, whom Fariha learned were definitely not the same animal. Fascinating...
"Thank you sir," Fariha said, smiling from ear to ear as she admired her new digs. Oh yes, this office would definitely do. Looking out the window, Fariha could see Trinity Church, which she once visited while attending Brockton High School. The Back Bay area sprawled over much of what she could see, and the rest of the city made a nice backdrop. Fariha could barely stop herself from squealing in front of Mr. Stone. This was the happiest day of her life!
Fast forward six years, and Fariha J. Dinga was in pure hell. Even with plenty of smarts, legal talent and a can-do attitude, Fariha found herself overwhelmed. The Boston legal scene was pretty cutthroat. Law firm politics didn't help. As the firm hired a sprinkling of African-American, Latino and Asian rookie lawyers every year, Fariha watched young men and women of color be put through the grinder by the firm's ruthless owners.
The law firm was essentially a shark tank, only bloodier and more cutthroat. Also, the lawyers at Winters, Dale & Stone, seventy seven percent of whom were middle-aged white males, had a real problem with a six-foot-tall, attractive and well-dressed young black woman who excelled in and out of the courtroom. Fariha's steadfast refusal to get involved with co-workers also marked her as an exception among the firm's crop of educated, beautiful and fast-rising young female lawyers.
Fariha also noticed that some of the other minority employees had something against her and the other black lawyers at the firm. Among the rookies from various minority backgrounds who made the cut, Fariha certainly stood out. The day Fariha got promoted to supervisory associate in the criminal division of the law firm, quite a few people rolled their eyes. They resented her talent and beauty, and feared her blackness. After six years, Fariha had enough...
With her head held high, Fariha Jasmine Dinga stood on the main floor of 500 Boylston Street, near the security guard's desk. Ready or not here I come, Fariha told herself. Taking a deep breath, the young woman strode through the doors, and headed outside. It was a bright and sunny day, and Fariha decided to go to the nearby Copley Mall, to grab a bite and collect her thoughts. After all, she had some decisions to make...
"Lady, look out!" came a panicked voice, and Fariha froze as a car came barreling down the road. Like a deer in headlights, Fariha found herself unable to move. A pair of strong arms grabbed her by the middle, and hefted her out of the way just as the car sped by. Fariha screamed, and then, she reasserted herself, and forcibly untangled herself from the arms that held her.
"Lady, are you alright?" said the owner of the brawny arms that recently manhandled Fariha, albeit to save her life. Fariha turned around and what she saw took her breath away. For a vision of masculine beauty stood before her. A tall, handsome man with mahogany skin and a smooth shaved head, clad in a drab brown uniform, looked at her with concern in her eyes.
"Um, yeah, I'm alright, I think," Fariha said, and the tall, dark-skinned brother looked her up and down. Fariha cocked an eyebrow, and pursed her full lips. The brother took a step back, smiled sheepishly and held his hands up. Fariha, who read body language for a living as an attorney, took that as a sign that the dude was on the defensive. Like the trained legal tactician she was, Fariha went on the offense...
"Thanks for the help, sir, please stop gawking, thank you, good day to you," Fariha said, and the brother stood there, his jaw hanging open. Shrugging, Fariha looked at him once more, and then carefully crossed the street. Walking at a brisk pace, Fariha stepped in front of the Boston Public Library, walked past the MBTA Train entrance, and made her way to the entrance of the Copley Mall.
"Lady, hold up," came a voice, and Fariha frowned as she stepped through the revolving doors. Turning around, Fariha saw the same guy from before, clad in a UPS brown uniform, and he stepped forward, a big grin on his face, and in his hand, he held a rather familiar-looking object. Fariha blinked in surprise as she realized that the stranger held her workplace I.D. Apparently, she'd dropped it on the street without realizing it...
"Oh shit, thanks," Fariha said, and the UPS man held out the card, which she took. Without another word, the brother turned to leave, and Fariha stood there, clutching the small plastic card which displayed her picture and employee number. The helpful stranger strode through the revolving doors, and Fariha felt a pang of regret. Damn it, she couldn't let him go, not like this, not after all he'd done for her...
"Sir, please wait," Fariha shouted, and she darted after the UPS man, who'd already reached the sidewalk by now. Moving as fast as her high heels would allow, Fariha strode after him, and caught him by the sleeve of his shirt. The man whirled around, and there was an intensity in his dark eyes which gave Fariha pause.