Memphis City Commissioner Henri Brooks Says Black Contractors Illegally Being Denied Access to City Contracts

WENDI C. THOMAS

Are African-American companies being shut out of Shelby County government contracts? That's the question that county commissioners Walter Bailey (eloquently) and Henri Brooks (inelegantly, as usual) posed at a May commission meeting. The county hasn't tracked minority/women-owned business participation in more than 30 years, but if the private sector is any indication, the answer is: Pretty much.

$1.16 billion Value of private sector prime construction contracts in the Memphis MSA, July 2003-December 2007 $1.15 billion Amount received by white male-owned firms $8.78 million Amount received by white female-owned firms $0 Amount received by black, Hispanic, Native American and Asian-owned firms - COMBINED. 

By way of context, here's the racial/ethnicity breakdown of the Memphis MSA, according to the 2000 U.S. Census. 16,416 2,322 627,172 523,246 White (Non-Hispanic) Black (Non-Hispanic) Asian or Pacif ic Islander (Non-H... Hispanic American Indian or Alaska Native... Two or More Races (Non-Hispanic)... And in case you were wondering, here's some info on the black-whiteHispanic wealth gap from the Pew Research Center via NPR. This chart could also be titled "Why I REFUSE to get my drawers in a wad over Brooks," or perhaps "If you want to be outraged, how about getting peeved over this?" 

Read more about minority/women-owned business and local government contracts online Friday at commercialappeal.com. 

Find out more facts about economic inequality in Memphis at commercialappeal.com/inequality.

Source: 2010 City of Memphis Comprehensive Disparity Study, 2010 U.S. Census Create infographics

(Read more about this on commercialappeal.com later Friday and in the print edition of The Commercial Appeal on Sunday)