Page 30 - Delaware Lawyer - Fall 2020

FEATURE
Douglas J. Cummings Jr.
The challenges of the pandemic as a call to do better
A Strengthened Resolve
In the thick of the pandemic, after protests had spilled into lootings, a moment took hold of me. The news footage revealed the destruction of Market Street, including the once-organized insides of Walgreens. But unrest was not confined to Downtown. My wife informed me that the gun store near my North Wilmington office had also been accosted, to some degree, that Saturday when I worked late. Her text that night, the weight of which did not resonate then, read, “You should come home.” I had been a stone’s throw away.
In this moment of reflection, I felt a mixture of pain, fear and sadness, not for myself, but my fellow Delawareans
and Americans. How dire circumstances must be to cause a person to break into the fortress that is a gun store. Or to raid Target, which, from a purely consumer standpoint, democratically sells various items at affordable prices. What would the aggrieved do with these acquisi- tions? When would the accosted busi- nesses reopen (if at all) to allow workers to resume generating income?
I remembered that our country has been called the greatest social ex- periment of humankind. Agreed. Our strength derives, in large part, from our courage to identify solutions after con- sidering issues from diverse perspectives. This, too, is the hallmark of a great law- yer: developing strategy to accomplish the client’s goals after viewing challeng- es from various viewpoints, including those adversarial and judicial. It seems empathy is integral to the architecture of a pathway forward in the courtroom, as well as in our greater society.
I shuddered to think I may not be contributing as much as my bandwidth would allow to ensure the contin- ued success of our experiment. Before becoming an attorney, I represented America while stationed abroad on a program designed to enhance multi- cultural understanding of people living in insular regions of Japan. I am proud to be married to a hard-working, first- generation, Chinese-American woman, whose eyes fatefully met mine at a law school reception. Our beautiful, mixed- race children are just some of the fruit of this American experiment.
The challenges we face are indeed dire, with the pandemic and racism being at the forefront. But so long as we believe that, while maintaining our sense of individuality, we are better to- gether, collaborating to address these challenges, we will overcome. It is con- temporary and meaningful to say that we, as Americans, continue to strive in forming a more perfect Union. Neces- sary are the implications that while we will always be imperfect, our spirit to-
ward progress and betterment cannot be quarantined.
This is why at Wawa, despite con- torting somewhat to maintain social distance, I held the door open for a person I did not know; a woman of color and different age who sought entry from more than a few paces away. She would thank me for the small act of kindness in an incommensurately big way. It is this internal sense of commu- nity, combined with a belief in prog- ress, which makes us American.
As the moment released me, I decided to do something extraordinary: I purchased the flags of the State of Delaware and the United States of America. They are faithfully displayed in my office for all to see, in-person or virtually, as pillars emblematic of my unwavering commitment to the furtherance of our shared experiment. How has the pandemic affected my life as an attorney, husband, father, neigh- bor, Delawarean and American? It has strengthened my resolve to do more.
28 DELAWARE LAWYER FALL 2020