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By Gregg Sangillo, National Journal
© National Journal Group Inc.
Friday, June 16, 2006

Minorities are often in the minority on Capitol Hill, K Street, and other parts of professional Washington, so it's not surprising that they've established their own networks, both inside and outside the workplace, for career development and personal support.

Jesse Price, a former legislative assistant to Rep. Melvin Watt, D-N.C., and now a lobbyist with Eli Lilly, put it this way: "We are in small numbers everywhere we are. No matter which company you're in, you may be one of a handful of African-American staff there. If you're working in a congressional office ... you may be the only person of color on a particular staff."

Several Capitol Hill staffers say that in addition to being small in number, minorities are spread out in many different offices and have few obvious ways to make connections at work. So a group like the Congressional Black Associates, says CBA President Nicole Barcliff, becomes all the more important. "You really kind of don't have that type of situation where you might run into people from similar circumstances," says Barcliff, who is a senior legislative assistant to Rep. Robert Brady, D-Pa. The CBA, she says, "really encourages people to step out of an isolationist mode and get to know the people around you."

Take one group of African-American women, mostly lobbyists but also Hill staffers and other government officials, that meets at least once a month for dinners in D.C. Organized by Tami Jackson, a lobbyist for Coca-Cola, the group is a loose, informal network. At a recent dinner at Palette Restaurant & Bar at 15th and M streets NW, the women talked about work, family, politics, popular culture, and everything in between. To a certain extent, the women say, the dinner group operates as a support mechanism.

"It's tough out there, but when you have a support group like this, it makes it so much easier," says Kriss Stanley, manager of legal and congressional affairs with global delivery giant DHL. Stanley is the most junior lobbyist at the dinner, and she says the other women have served as her mentors. "I was so green and they have so much experience, and you really need that type of guidance. And so I just really don't know where I would be without them."

It's nice just to take a break and get away from work for a while, the women said. "One of the things I like the most is that I don't necessarily have to talk about work. And in fact, sometimes I talk about work too much," says Kimberly Woodard, a lobbyist for Wal-Mart. "And my girlfriends just shut me up ... and so then we can just talk about life itself, and that's just a nice change of pace."

Dina Curtis, a longtime banking lobbyist who now works for the Martin Luther King Jr. National Memorial Project, believes that the regular dinners have enabled the women to form strong bonds that go beyond work. "A lot of what we have here is something that's bigger than a legislative issue. It's a sisterhood that has grown because we are sisters. I think we stay close and we find time for this moment for us to be together because of the emotions we feel for each other."

Of course, members of the group say, they certainly discuss work at the dinners, and the get-togethers are a useful way for them to share information. Says Tracey Walker of H&R Block, "The environment in D.C. is so competitive that it's real challenging for women to really make their mark without having a kind of network. And often the smartest person in the room is the person with the most information. And what I find is that this group sort of has circles that reach into all kinds of areas of Washington, and this is a place where we can come together and share that information." She adds, "It's great to be connected and have people that support you, and references and inside information. It really helps you move forward."

Joyce Brayboy, a dinner regular who is chief of staff to Rep. Watt, the chairman of the Congressional Black Caucus, says she often needs access to lobbyists with knowledge about policy issues. And the dinner network has proven useful for gaining that. "I think that there are a lot of times where there may be a particular vote or issue that comes up that I do need some information [for]," Brayboy says. "It's not like tomorrow we'll all call each other and say, 'I need your help with this.' But it's through this informal environment that we know that if we need some good information, because of something in particular that we're working on, that one of us at this table is bound to have some insight or some existing relationships."

On Capitol Hill, many of the networks of minorities are assembled through more-formal institutions: the Congressional Black Associates, the Black Republican Congressional Staff Association, and the Congressional Hispanic Staff Association, to name just a few.

But those groups frequently spawn more-informal gatherings, such as dinners, cookouts, happy hours, and other events. Eli Lilly's Price, who used to be involved with the CBA, says, "You know, you go to Cap Lounge for 10-Cent Wing Night, ostensibly to have some beers and some 10-cent wings, and you're wanting to know, 'Well, hey, what did your boss do on HR such and such?' And that's just a completely geeky, esoteric Washington phenomenon, and it's no different among the black staffers than in the Hill community at large."

In addition to networks on Capitol Hill, African-Americans on K Street have a built-in bridge. The Washington Government Relations Group, currently headed by lobbyist Robert Drummer, is an all-African-American networking and professional-development organization. It is heavily involved in volunteer activities, hosts a golf tournament, and recently held a 25-year anniversary gala.

Because black Republicans in Washington are especially few and far between, many feel an even stronger need to seek each other out in places outside the office. Sarah Jackson, the chair of the Black Republican Congressional Staff Association, says that a dinner reception the group organized last November generated so much interest that she had to turn people away. Jackson, the press secretary to Rep. Jeff Fortenberry, R-Neb., formerly worked for Rep. Pete Sessions, R-Texas. She says of African-American conservatives, "You see [us] sort of being ridiculed in the media, by other black individuals sometimes, or just by other folks on the other side of the political spectrum." So the group serves as a place for people who can identify with one another to share similar stories. "It's an opportunity for us to kind of get together and learn."

One of the benefits of getting to know other professionals outside of work is that it's also a way to plug in to what's going on in the city. And finding other individuals of a similar ethnic or racial heritage can open a range of opportunities. Because Washington is an inherently transient place, people frequently arrive with few, if any, social or employment contacts. And through small organizations and networks, they can begin to find out about job opportunities and get advice on career development.

Dino Teppara, legislative director to Rep. Joe Wilson, R-S.C., is involved in a number of activities with Indian-Americans and South Asian-Americans. He tells a story of how he got plugged in. In early 2002, just after Wilson was elected, Roll Call took a photo of Wilson's entire staff. And Kapil Sharma, then an aide to Rep. Frank Pallone, D-N.J., and now a lobbyist, noticed Teppara. "He e-mailed me and he said, 'You look like a South Asian staffer,'" Teppara says. "And I e-mailed him back and said, 'I am.' So we became friends after that." Sharma was "the first South Asian staffer to kind of show me the door and help me get used to the Hill," Teppara adds. And he, in turn, has been a mentor for new young South Asian staffers on the Hill, and he's now co-chair of the South Asian-American Congressional Staff Association.

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