Description: The 2020 murder of George Floyd sparked mass protests that pushed many institutions, including corporations, to confront racial inequality. From 2020 to 2024, companies issued public statements to align with racial justice causes and protect their reputations from claims that their practices perpetuate inequality. In response to conservative backlash, many began to withdraw those commitments. Disclosureland argues that corporate rhetoric - whether omitting past involvement in racial inequality, presenting race-conscious disclosures as evidence of action, or retreating under pressure - limits meaningful racial progress. Even when companies pledged to hire and promote people of color or fund racial equity causes, those pledges often served to narrow the scope of corporate responsibility. Through detailed analysis, Disclosureland shows how these practices preserve corporate financial interests while appearing responsive. The book is critical, corrective, and hopeful, urging a functioning federal government and corporate stakeholders to hold companies accountable for their words to enable real progress.
Brief description: Atinuke O. Adediran studies the relationship between business, law, and society. A legal scholar and sociologist, her research has won national awards, including recognition from the Ford School at the University of Michigan, the Ford Foundation, and the Russell Sage Foundation. She is currently a Professor of Law at Fordham University School of Law.
Review Quotes: 'Disclosureland offers a bracing tonic against frothy corporate announcements of racial equity efforts. From Adediran the social scientist we learn that companies resist systemic change that might open opportunity, and paper over problems that customers and shareholders deserve to know about. From Adediran the lawyer we learn that governments could be demanding disclosures that could lead to real change. This book offers a trenchant, incisive analysis - and genuine hope.' Frank Dobbin, Henry Ford II Professor of the Social Sciences, Harvard University