Supporting Minority-Owned Businesses

By Hector V. Barreto
Administrator, U.S. Small Business Administration

It has been 21 years since President Ronald Reagan proclaimed the very first Minority Enterprise Development, MED, Week. Since then, every President has issued a Proclamation designating a week for minority business owners to gather, speak with government officials, be honored for their achievements, and – perhaps most importantly – share ideas and innovations with each other.

Every minority business owner has a different story. Every minority entrepreneur has taken a different journey to success. Every minority business has something to teach to another. One of those lessons is that minority small business owners all have much in common. For one thing, they have made great strides overcoming tremendous obstacles. In the last 20 years, the number of minority-owned businesses in this country has more than doubled. Minorities own 15 percent of all American businesses. That’s more than 3 million firms, more than 3 million factories and stores, consulting shops and construction outfits. Minority-owned businesses are the fastest growing segment of American business today.

Why is that?

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