Posted by Wacky Voice Of the Negro on December 16, 2010 at 15:32:18:
Meeks says minority contracts only for blacks
BY FRAN SPIELMAN
City Hall Reporter/fspielman@suntimes.com
Dec 16, 2010 03:26PM
Mayoral challenger James Meeks scrambled Thursday to put out a political fire touched off by his suggestion that only African-Americans should be eligible for city contracts set aside for minorities and women.
Meeks made the statement on Wednesday during an interview on WVON-AM (1690). It happened during a discussion of why African-American businesses got a 7 percent sliver of Chicago’s $1 billion spending pie through Aug. 31, down from 8 percent a year ago.
“The word ‘minority’ from our standpoint should mean African-American. I don’t think women, Asians and Hispanics should be able to use that title,” he said.
“That’s why our numbers cannot improve — because we use women, Asians and Hispanics who are not people of color, who are not people who have been discriminated against.”
Hours after making those remarks, Meeks back-tracked by saying he would only exclude white women if elected mayor. The set-aside program currently earmarks 25 percent of all city contracts for minorities and 5 percent for companies owned by women.
“I don’t believe white women should be considered in that count ….You have white women in the category. They receive contracts. Then, white men receive contracts. Where does that leave everybody else?” he told Fox-owned WFLD-Channel 32 news.
On Thursday, Meeks issued a written statement further clarifying his remarks.
It emphasized that “all minority- and women-owned businesses” deserve their “fair share” of city contracts. But Meeks also noted that “systemic corruption” has allowed white-owned “fronts” posing as minorities and women to defraud the program and make African-Americans the “most under-represented among city contractors.”
“As mayor [Meeks] would put an end to the corruption and lack of accountability that has been allowed to go unchecked,” the statement said.
The explanation came too late to put out the political fire.
Hedy Ratner, co-president of the Women’s Business Development Center, was already “furious” at Meeks. She argued Thursday that, if anything, the 5 percent set-aside for women “should be higher.”
“We are still discriminated against by access to capital and access to opportunities. Women own service businesses that tend to be smaller. We don’t have enough opportunities to bid and compete for major projects,” Ratner said.
“Is he saying that this should be an African-American city with policies only for African-Americans? I’m surprised that a candidate for mayor who wants to represent the entire city would exclude a majority of its citizens.”
Paul Cerpa, executive director of the Hispanic American Construction Industry Association (HACIA), said the federal government has made it clear that the “presumptive group” of those historically discriminated against includes blacks, Hispanics, Asians, Native-Americans and “women, regardless of ethnicity.”
Cerpa said it’s “extremely divisive” — and politically foolish — for Meeks to suggest excluding anyone during a race for mayor that will undoubtedly be won by the candidate most able to build coalitions across racial and ethnic lines.
“Minority business programs have generally been afforded for the benefit of all. Now to draw the line in the sand and say, ‘This is only mine — not yours’ doesn’t allow everyone to play in the sandbox,” Cerpa said.
Of the $1 billion in contracts awarded during the first eight months of this year, African-Americans got 7 percent or $73.6 million worth, compared to 8 percent or $83 million for Asian-Americans, 14 percent or $142.2 million for Hispanics and 8 percent or $81 million for women.
In 2005, James Duff pleaded guilty to masterminding a scheme to defraud the city of $100 million in contracts earmarked for minorities and women.
A string of revelations by the Chicago Sun-Times provided further proof that Daley’s minority set-aside program had been manipulated by the politically connected at the expense of minorities.