Ed Gardner, the 87-year-old founder of Soft Sheen hair care products, met with Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel this week to discuss the lack of African-American construction workers on jobs around the city. The Tuesday meeting came after more than two weeks of protest from Gardner and supporters seeking more opportunity for Chicago’s out-of-work or under-employed construction workers.

Gardner’s protest began in September when he passed a South Side construction site where sidewalk was being laid and saw no blacks among the workers. Gardner literally stepped (with his cane) into the wet cement to make abundantly clear how he felt about the situation. After calling for additional protests, about 1,000 joined the business leader on September 30, including Reps. Danny K. Davis (D-Chicago) and Bobby L. Rush (D-Chicago). Other protests have also taken place.

Just days later, when asked about the protest during a press conference, Mayor Rahm Emanuel talked up the number of jobs that have been created in the transportation space and the minority- and women-owned businesses that have been commissioned for the work. However, he says unions and the lack of training they’re providing for minority workers also needs to be addressed.

Fast forward to Tuesday and Gardner was sitting with the Mayor. According to Gardner, he told the Mayor, “It must be corrected. I told the mayor, as far as I’m concerned, he is totally and finally responsible to seeing that this situation is corrected.” He wants half of the construction workers in the city to be African American, but there’s no law that says that needs to be the case, CBS reports.

“The mayor seems to show some sign of being concerned about making a change. That’s all I’m concerned about, that things are not like they have been for the past many, many years in the city of Chicago,” Gardner continued. He also tied the lack of jobs with violence in the black community.
Separately, Mayor Emanuel addressed the high-level of violence in the city yesterday, promising to add 500 police officers to the city’s streets.
FYI, Gardner founded Soft Sheen in 1964 and sold the company to L’Oreal in 1998.

The conversation about black construction workers will continue between the mayor’s office and the Coalition of African American Leaders (C.O.A.L). Chicago readers (and others in the know), do you think the path to change is being laid?

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View black construction companies here.

Source: Madame Noir