African-Americans who have overcome obstacles to achieve success in the property-casualty industry are hoping to show young people of color there are opportunities for them, that they are not alone, and that insurance is a dynamic business worthy of their interest and expertise.

While racism remains a concern in some situations, and misunderstandings persist, there is room for minorities to grow and prosper in all segments of the insurance business, those queried for this article say.

Pointing out some of the historic and continuing challenges facing minorities in insurance, Roosevelt Haywood III, president and chief executive officer of the Gary, Ind.-based independent agency, Haywood and Fleming Associates, recounted the story of how his father got involved in the industry.

Want to continue reading?
Become a Free PropertyCasualty360 Digital Reader

Your access to unlimited PropertyCasualty360 content isn’t changing.
Once you are an ALM digital member, you’ll receive:

  • Breaking insurance news and analysis, on-site and via our newsletters and custom alerts
  • Weekly Insurance Speak podcast featuring exclusive interviews with industry leaders
  • Educational webcasts, white papers, and ebooks from industry thought leaders
  • Critical converage of the employee benefits and financial advisory markets on our other ALM sites, BenefitsPRO and ThinkAdvisor
NOT FOR REPRINT

© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.