Advocacy group calls for Southern Company, parent of Alabama Power, to cut ties to Balch Bingham law firm over racist conduct in North Birmingham and beyond

Southern Company, the parent firm of Alabama Power, should sever its ties to Balch Bingham because of the Birmingham law firm's allegedly racist behavior at a time when the nation is undergoing a reckoning with racism in its past and present, a public charity and advocacy group announced in a statement yesterday. The move comes four days after Marathon Petroleum became the 18th D.C. lobbying client to dump the scandal-plagued Balch firm.

The advocacy group, Consejo de Latinos Unidos (CDLU), publishes the blog banbalch.com, which has thoroughly chronicled the Balch firm's involvement in the North Birmingham Superfund bribery scandal and other unsavory activities. From yesterday's post at the Web site:

According to court records, Southern Company and its subsidiaries like Alabama Power continue to use Balch, a law firm that was involved in a bribery scheme to suppress and discourage African-Americans from having the EPA test their toxic property; the same law firm allegedly involved in ‘diluting and dividing’ the African-American vote; the same law firm that represented a quarry company allegedly involved in a ‘whites-only’ land grab and the proposed moving of historic slave graves,” said K.B. Forbes, Chief Executive Officer of the CDLU.

Last week, Marathon Petroleum terminated Balch Bingham in less than 24 hours after receiving a letter and report from the CDLU. Marathon Petroleum declared on Friday that the company was “standing firmly against racism, intolerance, and hate of any kind.”

“The repugnant, immoral, and egregious behavior by Balch Bingham should not be tolerated. Thomas A. Fanning, the Chief Executive Officer of Southern Company must fire Balch Bingham immediately and unequivocally. Black lives matter,” Forbes declared.

 Balch's dubious actions have come both outside and inside the law firm, including its employment practices:

Last year, Balch Bingham let go of their only African-American female attorney in Birmingham, Alabama, Kimberly Bell, who headed diversity efforts at the firm. With over 200 attorneys, partners, and top staff throughout their footprint, only five Balch Bingham attorneys at the firm are African-American, each one assigned to a different Balch office, reflecting alleged tokenism.

Earlier this month, Fanning declared on behalf of Southern Company, “Racism, in any form, is abhorrent. It cannot and will not be accepted, ignored or dismissed. It must be confronted head-on across our society as it is within our company. The time has come to uncover and destroy systemic racism in all its forms.”

CDLU now seeks to hold the Southern Company CEO to his words:

The CDLU stated, “Actions speak louder than words. Southern Company must rid itself of systemic racism and the first step is by firing Balch Bingham publicly and slamming shut the revolving door.”

Many former partners at Balch have been promoted to leadership positions at Southern Company, including Mark A. Crosswhite, the President and CEO of Alabama Power, one of Southern Company’s most profitable subsidiaries.