{"id":1626277,"date":"2022-08-30T05:04:35","date_gmt":"2022-08-30T09:04:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1626277"},"modified":"2022-08-30T05:05:26","modified_gmt":"2022-08-30T09:05:26","slug":"no-whites-allowed-pfizer-fellowship-flagrantly-violates-the-law-lawyers-say","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/no-whites-allowed-pfizer-fellowship-flagrantly-violates-the-law-lawyers-say\/","title":{"rendered":"No Whites Allowed: Pfizer Fellowship Flagrantly Violates the Law, Lawyers Say"},"content":{"rendered":"<aside class=\"mashsb-container mashsb-main mashsb-stretched\"><div class=\"mashsb-box\"><div class=\"mashsb-count mash-medium\" style=\"&quot;\"><div class=\"counts mashsbcount\">22<\/div><span class=\"mashsb-sharetext\">SHARES<\/span><\/div><div class=\"mashsb-buttons\"><a class=\"mashicon-facebook mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/sharer.php?u=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.conservativenewsdaily.net%2Fbreaking-news%2Fno-whites-allowed-pfizer-fellowship-flagrantly-violates-the-law-lawyers-say%2F\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Facebook<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-twitter mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"https:\/\/twitter.com\/intent\/tweet?text=&amp;url=https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/?p=1626277&amp;via=ConservNewsDly\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Twitter<\/span><\/a><a class=\"mashicon-subscribe mash-medium mash-nomargin mashsb-noshadow\" href=\"#\" target=\"_top\" rel=\"nofollow\"><span class=\"icon\"><\/span><span class=\"text\">Subscribe<\/span><\/a><div class=\"onoffswitch2 mash-medium mashsb-noshadow\" style=\"display:none\"><\/div><\/div>\n            <\/div>\n                <div style=\"clear:both\"><\/div><\/aside>\n            <!-- Share buttons by mashshare.net - Version: 4.0.47--><div>\n\t\t\t<span class=\"article-category\"><a class=\"\" href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/latest-news\/\">Latest News<\/a><\/span><\/p>\n<p class=\"article-excerpt\">The &#8216;Breakthrough Fellowship&#8217; prohibits whites and Asians from applying, a restriction that is \u201cflagrantly illegal\u201d  <\/p>\n<figure class=\"post-thumbnail-container relative lg:mr-24 w-full my-4 mb-8\"><figcaption class=\"absolute text-white p-4 w-full text-right text-xs bottom-0 bg-black opacity-75\">\n\t\t\t\tPfizer&#8217;s headquarters in New York City (Getty Images)\t\t\t<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<p>\t\t\t<span class=\"text-gray text-xs md:text-lg\"><a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/author\/aaron-sibarium\/\" title=\"Posts by Aaron Sibarium\" class=\"author url fn text-red-700\" rel=\"author\">Aaron Sibarium<\/a> \u2022 August 30, 2022 5:00 am<\/span><\/p><\/div>\n<div>\n<p>The pharmaceutical giant Pfizer offers a prestigious fellowship that bars whites and Asians from applying. Trumpeted on the company\u2019s website as a &#8220;Bold Move&#8221; to &#8220;create a workplace for all,&#8221; civil rights lawyers are characterizing it in a different way: as a blatant violation of the law.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;This Pfizer program is so flagrantly illegal I seriously wonder how it passed internal review by its general counsel,&#8221; said Adam Mortara, one of the country\u2019s top civil rights attorneys.<\/p>\n<p>Pfizer\u2019s &#8220;Breakthrough Fellowship&#8221; offers college students multiple internships, a fully funded master&#8217;s degree, and several years of employment at the pharmaceutical giant. It also restricts applications to &#8220;Black\/African American, Latino\/Hispanic and Native American&#8221; students, the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/about\/careers\/breakthrough-fellowship-program\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/about\/careers\/breakthrough-fellowship-program&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw00RN20UIIYRzYO5tOaCSCp\">fellowship requirements<\/a> state.<\/p>\n<p>In a <a href=\"https:\/\/cdn.pfizer.com\/pfizercom\/Program_FAQs_08162022.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/cdn.pfizer.com\/pfizercom\/Program_FAQs_08162022.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2BWKzO2oCQgn2dw8xlHIxj\">Frequently Asked Questions brochure<\/a> about the nine-year program, Pfizer asserts that it is an &#8220;equal opportunity employer.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-1632180\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1024x314-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"314\" srcset=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1024x314-1-1.png 1024w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-300x92-1.png 300w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-768x236-1.png 768w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1536x471-1.png 1536w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1400x429-1.png 1400w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-736x226-1.png 736w, https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled.png 2048w\" \/><\/p>\n<p><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignnone size-large wp-image-1632177\" src=\"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-1024x273-1.png\" alt=\"\" width=\"1024\" height=\"273\" srcset=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-1024x273.png 1024w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-300x80.png 300w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-768x205.png 768w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-1536x409.png 1536w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-1400x373.png 1400w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1-736x196.png 736w, https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2022\/08\/Untitled-1.png 1576w\" \/><\/p>\n<p>Gail Heriot, a member of the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights, described the fellowship as a &#8220;clear case of liability&#8221; under federal law: a violation of the Civil Rights Act of 1866, which bans racial discrimination in contracting, and Title VII of the 1964 Civil Rights Act, which bans racial discrimination in employment.<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;Major corporations seem to have forgotten that there\u2019s such a thing as law,&#8221; said Heriot, who is also a law professor at the University of San Diego. &#8220;They seem to think that as long as they\u2019re woke, they\u2019re bulletproof.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>As a legal matter, that view is questionable. Some companies have scrapped race-conscious programs in the wake of discrimination lawsuits, which\u2014when they involve overt racial quotas\u2014typically succeed. Even the threat of a lawsuit can pay dividends: Last year, for example, the American Civil Rights Project <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/submissions\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-coca-cola-company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/submissions\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-coca-cola-company\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw09gC7pzhjlpKKlMtzn1jui\">sent Coca-Cola<\/a> a letter demanding that it drop a requirement that law firms working with the company staff at least 30 percent of their teams with &#8220;diverse lawyers.&#8221; In a <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/update-coca-colas-widely-disseminated-outside-counsel-guidelines-have-not-been-and-are-not-policy-of-the-company\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/update-coca-colas-widely-disseminated-outside-counsel-guidelines-have-not-been-and-are-not-policy-of-the-company\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3uKr4-ty1rDc7tDixNI-WX\">memo to shareholders<\/a> in February, Coca-Cola announced it was backing away from the policy.<\/p>\n<p>Every lawyer contacted by the <em>Washington Free Beacon<\/em> said the case against Pfizer was open-and-shut. David Bernstein, an expert on civil rights law at George Mason University School of Law, said the Breakthrough Fellowship was &#8220;obviously illegal.&#8221; Dan Morenoff, the executive director of the American Civil Rights Project, called it a &#8220;very facial violation&#8221; of Title VII. Jonathan Berry, a partner at Boyden Gray &#038; Associates, said it was &#8220;hard to see any way&#8221; the program was legal.<\/p>\n<p>Pfizer did not respond to a request for comment.<\/p>\n<p>The pharmaceutical giant is not alone in flouting anti-discrimination law. From <a href=\"https:\/\/www.blackenterprise.com\/uber-eats-door-dash-settle-race-discrimination-claim-over-free-delivery-for-black-owned-restaurants\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.blackenterprise.com\/uber-eats-door-dash-settle-race-discrimination-claim-over-free-delivery-for-black-owned-restaurants\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw3hshPfU7mDA-adj3lGnmrU\">Uber<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.jdsupra.com\/legalnews\/sec-approves-nasdaq-s-board-diversity-9963032\/#:~:text=New%20Rule%205605(f)%20requires,underrepresented%20minority%E2%80%9D%20or%20as%20LGBTQ%2B.\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.jdsupra.com\/legalnews\/sec-approves-nasdaq-s-board-diversity-9963032\/%23:~:text%3DNew%2520Rule%25205605(f)%2520requires,underrepresented%2520minority%25E2%2580%259D%2520or%2520as%2520LGBTQ%252B.&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1tPjEnBBYUijxw5JRVs6cv\">NASDAQ<\/a> to <a href=\"https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-jpmorgan-chase-co\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.americancivilrightsproject.org\/blog\/open-letter-on-behalf-of-shareholders-to-officers-and-directors-of-jpmorgan-chase-co\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw05A3VONCwoRSkh6t_R_NO4\">JPMorgan Chase<\/a>, a kind of casual lawlessness has descended across corporate America, with C-suites using\u2014and publicizing\u2014illegal racial quotas to achieve their diversity goals. That trend is especially acute in Silicon Valley: Google, for example, <a href=\"https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/campus\/google-partners-with-top-universities-for-this-prestigious-fellowship-lawyers-say-the-racial-and-gender-quotas-its-imposing-are-illegal\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/freebeacon.com\/campus\/google-partners-with-top-universities-for-this-prestigious-fellowship-lawyers-say-the-racial-and-gender-quotas-its-imposing-are-illegal\/&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0DUCJPPEciMbkerZPCnBeW\">restricts<\/a> the number of white and Asian men that universities can nominate for a prestigious Ph.D. fellowship, a policy that effectively encourages schools to violate civil rights statutes.<\/p>\n<p>The Breakthrough Fellowship is part of a larger push within Pfizer to &#8220;embed DEI into our DNA,&#8221; per the company\u2019s 2021 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_ESG_Report.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_ESG_Report.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2RD0Z_LkHa8Au8i_JA-BZv\">Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) report<\/a>. Pfizer CEO Albert Bourla in 2020 made &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/news\/articles\/aiming_for_equity_assessing_pfizer_s_ongoing_commitment_to_diversity_and_inclusion\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/news\/articles\/aiming_for_equity_assessing_pfizer_s_ongoing_commitment_to_diversity_and_inclusion&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw1KeVJv7svsU7rGwbBJloaU\">equity<\/a>&#8221;\u00a0 one of the company\u2019s four &#8220;<a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2019\/our-purpose\/our-values-and-culture\/index.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2019\/our-purpose\/our-values-and-culture\/index.html&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2qYH6GJWdaoYzFvw2S63Q_\">core values<\/a>&#8221; alongside excellence, courage, and joy. &#8220;We don\u2019t just talk about the importance of equity,&#8221;\u00a0 Bourla said at the time. &#8220;We put our words into action.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>Central to those actions has been the use of diversity targets\u2014concrete, legible benchmarks the company can measure. &#8220;By having a clear overarching DEI vision,&#8221; Pfizer\u2019s 2021 <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_Annual_Review.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_Annual_Review.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw0Uzn8XwhB2kV3gcPwQ-bUk\">annual review<\/a> reads, &#8220;we\u2019re able to outline distinct DEI roles and accountabilities, align our therapeutic areas and divisions with our vision, and assess our progress against measurable outcomes.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>While not a formal quota system, this metrics-based approach has nonetheless produced dramatic\u2014and disproportionate\u2014results. In 2021, the ESG report states, &#8220;72% of summer interns surveyed identified as representing an underrepresented group or disadvantaged background, far exceeding our goal of 50%.&#8221; For comparison, non-whites make up less than 40 percent of the U.S. population.<\/p>\n<p>The Breakthrough Fellowship appears to be contributing to that skew. The program\u2019s first cohort was &#8220;55 percent female and 45 percent male,&#8221; according to the <a href=\"https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_Annual_Review.pdf\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\" data-saferedirecturl=\"https:\/\/www.google.com\/url?q=https:\/\/www.pfizer.com\/sites\/default\/files\/investors\/financial_reports\/annual_reports\/2021\/files\/Pfizer_ESG_Report.pdf&amp;source=gmail&amp;ust=1661892207208000&amp;usg=AOvVaw2RD0Z_LkHa8Au8i_JA-BZv\">annual review<\/a>, &#8220;with a diversity breakdown of 40 percent Black\/African American, 40 percent Latinx\/Hispanic and 20 percent two or more races.&#8221; Pfizer plans to have 100 Breakthrough fellows by 2025.<\/p>\n<p>Asked about the company\u2019s claim to be an equal-opportunity employer, Berry, the Boyden Gray attorney, used the term &#8220;doublespeak.&#8221;<\/p>\n<p>&#8220;If you close off certain employment opportunities to the \u2018wrong race,\u2019 you\u2019re not an equal opportunity anything,&#8221; Berry said. &#8220;You\u2019re a bigot.&#8221;<\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Latest News The &#8216;Breakthrough Fellowship&#8217; prohibits whites and Asians from applying, a restriction that is \u201cflagrantly illegal\u201d  Pfizer&#8217;s headquarters in New York City (Getty Images)<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":184,"featured_media":2315279,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_mo_disable_npp":"","fifu_image_url":"","fifu_image_alt":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-1626277","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1626277","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/184"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=1626277"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/1626277\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/2315279"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=1626277"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=1626277"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.conservativenewsdaily.net\/breaking-news\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=1626277"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}