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Ruth Simmons: “Be open to the world”

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Ruth Simmons, LSE, Above the Parapet,Former Brown University president on discrimination, intersectionality, and the possibility of change.

Speaking at a public event in London last week, former Brown University president, Texas-born Ruth Simmons shared her “fantasy” of being able to live “just as herself”.

She outlined a dream of being perceived and treated simply as a person of great capacity, intellect, strength, and a collection of really fantastic shoes.

But freedom from labels and stereotyping, Simmons acknowledged, is not possible for anyone.

It has though remained an irresistible dream throughout her career, as she has repeatedly had to navigate her own intersectional minority identity as a black woman, from a poor, racially segregated background in the Southern USA.

As the first female president of Brown University and the first black person to head an Ivy League institution, Simmons emphasised the importance of speaking out about all the additional challenges she has had to deal with – which, she says, no male president would have faced.

And she admitted that, had she known just what was in store, she probably would not have accepted the role.

This was largely due to the personal pain of overseeing an investigation into the university founders’ involvement in the slave trade, an especially emotive issue for Simmons, who is herself descended from slaves.

Her decision to tackle the issue head-on by establishing a committee and a dedicated research centre initially met with much criticism and personal attack but it has since been lauded and emulated by institutions worldwide.

Similarly, during earlier positions, her campaigns for more equal and inclusive hiring practices met with much initial resistance, but ultimately led to accolades for both herself and the institutions involved.

While the fantasy of “just being herself” retains its allure, Simmons admitted that the challenges she has faced may well have made her a better leader.

And she said focusing on helping others has helped her process the discrimination she personally encountered.

She briefly alluded to being badly treated as a student at Harvard and the unequal pay she received as a young academic. She was told the men needed higher salaries, “because they had children to support”.

But, having emphasised the importance of speaking out about the challenges and discrimination she had to deal with, Simmons concluded by focusing on the possibility of change, which her own series of “firsts” illustrates so well.

She highlighted all the support she received throughout her own career, including all the white male leaders who aided her development towards the presidencies of first Smith College and then Brown.

And asked by a member of the audience whether she thought the UK could have a black prime minister within our generation, she responded “Why not?” and pointed out that unlikely as anything may seem at the present time, we simply can’t predict what events are just around the corner.

Her final call? “Be open to the world.”

Simmons was speaking as part of the LSE’s Above the Parapet series.

This is a project that has completed in-depth interviews with 80 women who reached the top levels of politics, diplomacy, academia and the civil service.

Led by Dr Purna Sen, deputy director of the LSE’s Institute of Public Affairs, the Above the Parapet team is now working on a report analysing the challenges their interviewees encountered, and how their experiences can be used to help future generations.

The team is seeking recommendations of organisations to share their findings with; do get in touch with them if you have any suggestions.

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