Minority Business Registration

Out of context: Reply #14

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  • Continuity0

    @shellie (and I'm not trolling you, just giving an honest outsider's opinion):

    'It's just an extra certification like many other certification (via diversity, technical or clean energy certs, etc) that can get you priority on an agency vendor list.'

    Well ... no. It's not like any other certification, for the very simple fact that it's based entirely on your skin colour, not capabilities. You cite technical and clean energy certification, which are based on a need to fulfill very specific requirements that are based on the product need itself. In other words, no company who doesn't offer clean energy products will get that certification, and can - therefore - not supply the government with the products they are looking to buy.

    That is certification based on merit, effectively.

    You work in advertising, like a lot of us here on the Qoob. Doesn't it make you feel a bit weird that you're on this vendors list solely on the basis of you skin colour, and not your portfolio?

    Scarabin nailed it with, 'i cannot imagine a client saying "man, i need a business card. better find me a certified black person"'; frankly, I can't either, it just floors me that this sort of thinking is so prevalent in the US.

    There _are_ cases where hiring a person of minority status is absolutely justified: for example, if you're doing work intended for a foreign market that needs to be in another language, chances are you'll want to at least try to find someone from that country to make sure the work is top quality, from the language perspective.

    Otherwise, I just can't see any other justification for singling out minorities like this.

    • *can - therefore - supply ...

      Fucking early mornings.
      Continuity
    • My point is that this whole notion seems so alien to me. I've never heard of anything else like this in any country I've lived in, and it was never an issue at all.Continuity
    • ... was never an issue at all.Continuity
    • @Continuity I was on the vendor list before getting my certification so no -- I don't feel weird.shellie
    • But thanks for not being a total dick about your response. I disagree w/you.shellie

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