Greg Smith has been called many things – flattering and not – since publicly resigning from the storied firm of Goldman Sachs last Wednesday via an op-ed in The New York Times. He has been hailed as a “hero” and a “whistleblower” by some, while called “self-righteous” and deemed a “traitor” by others.

 

Mr. Smith, in a sense, has become a Rorschach test for our times. We see in him what we value or disdain – depending on our perspective, and perhaps reinforced by generational attitudes.

Those who celebrate Smith’s courage to speak truth to power in such a public forum prize audacity and an uncompromising commitment to ethics – especially on Wall Street. Six months ago, the Occupy Movement became a home for this ethos – people of all ages, but especially the young, speaking out, taking up space, and legitimizing a new conversation about inequality and accountability.