Business Report: Holding Their Own

After the U.S. Supreme Court set limits on a 30-year tradition of affirmative action in awarding contracts, many felt that minority businesses would face grim times. But those firms have managed to de

There were many at the time who thought the Supreme Court decision in Adarand v. Pena would drive a stake through the heart of America's minority-owned businesses. In 1995 Adarand Constructors, a Colorado company that installed highway guardrails, sued the U.S. Department of Transportation for awarding a contract to a minority-owned company even though Adarand's bid was lower. The case was widely considered a test of the nation's sincerity about affirmative action. So when the court upheld Adarand's claim, the conventional wisdom was that black entrepreneurs had finally come to Armageddon.

Happily, the doomsday scenario has proved wrong. No doubt, Adarand...

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