BlackRock Executive Is Getting Asset Managers Talking About Race

One of the few senior black employees at BlackRock Inc. is getting an overwhelmingly white industry to talk about racism.

Gavin Lewis, managing director for BlackRock’s institutional client business in the United Kingdom, spurred a conversation on asset management’s shortcomings in a recent LinkedIn post. “After the events of the last few weeks I’m without words. I’ve found myself questioning who and what I am,” he wrote alongside a photo of himself holding a sign with the words “#IAM… a son, a father, a mentor. “ In another, he asked people to “talk about black” and “join the movement,” tagging it “#IAM.”

Thousands of posts followed with the #Talkaboutblack ...