FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
March 11, 2024
Contact NMSDC: Jered Weber
Communications and Engagement Manager
jered.weber@nmsdc.org
NEW YORK – Today, the leading organization for minority business enterprise (MBE) development, the National Minority Supplier Development Council (NMSDC), expressed its disappointment in the ruling made by the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas Judge, Mark T. Pittman earlier this week. Pittman held that the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA)’s presumption that businesses owned by Black, Latino, and other minorities are inherently disadvantaged violates the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection. NMSDC also emphasized its support of the Minority Business Development Agency (MBDA) as a valuable resource and strong advocate for the MBE community.
In response to the ruling, NMSDC CEO and President Ying McGuire issued a statement to the NMSDC network reaffirming NMSDC’s dedication to its mission. “While we are disappointed and saddened by this week’s news, NMSDC remains committed to supporting our certified MBEs and the continued advancement of business diversity, something that is critical for the future growth and success of the U.S. economy. We remain steadfast in our knowledge that business diversity is also good for American businesses and competitiveness,” said McGuire. “
“NMSDC recognizes the systemic barriers that minority-owned businesses often encounter, which the court has acknowledged in its decision, include discrimination and bias, and thanks the MBDA for its continued work to acknowledge and dismantle these barriers. NMSDC will continue to address these challenges for our certified MBEs so that we can build a more resilient and inclusive economy that works for all,” she added.
This resolve was underscored in a collective open letter to Fortune 500 CEOs, co-signed by NMSDC alongside other leading organizations, advocating for the irrefutable economic merit of diversity. The letter, issued earlier this month, called on corporate leaders to “act on the overwhelming evidence and positive outcomes by expanding your company’s commitments to and investments in diversity initiatives, including supplier diversity programs.”
NMSDC will be working with its network in the coming weeks to further assess the full implications of this decision on its certified MBEs and provide them the support they need to continue to grow their businesses in the face of this challenge to the MBDA and the support it provides.
About NMSDC
Founded in 1972, NMSDC is the longest-operating business growth engine for the broadest group of systematically excluded communities of color (Asian-Indian, Asian-Pacific, Black, Hispanic, and Native American), and our impact goes far beyond the supply chain. It’s about upward mobility for the emerging majority of Americans, an equal shot at participating in the American experiment of free-market capitalism and entrepreneurship. Our work is about correcting the unequal access to wealth-building opportunities. For more information, please visit nmsdc.org.
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