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successful.”
Cobb defends the disparity study, pointing
out that MGT of America has a strong track
record.
“This firm we hired has worked with 40
states,” he said. “They look at hard data and
also conduct one-to-one interviews. And
when disparity studies have been chal-
lenged in court, they have won their cases.
So I know for a fact that the methodology
they are using is exactly what they have to
use.”
To Bid or Not to Bid?
The disparity study
showed inequities, but
it also gave ODOT
somewhat of a pass,
on the grounds that
African
American
contractors had not
entered bids for many
of the contracts. Black
firms simply were not
available for hire, the
study said.
“Sure they are,” contradicts Burch.
“ODOT uses a very narrow set of criteria
for availability. They look at your firm and
say you haven’t bid on the last 10 projects
so you’re not available.”
From the contractor’s point of view,
Burch says, putting your name on the list of
certified highway contractors or bidding on
ODOT projects can seem like a waste of
time, when you have never secured a state
transportation contract and don’t know any-
one who has been awarded a contract.
“It doesn’t mean you are not available,”
Burch says. “It means you’ve given up bid-
ding—you’re discouraged.”
Other disparity studies use a much broad-
er definition of availability, Burch said.
They use everyone in the certification data-
base and even those who choose not to be
certified, but are licensed and qualified to
do the work.
Cobb disagrees. If construction firms
want to contract with the state they should
follow the rules and register, he said.
“You cannot give up,” he says. “A firm
basically has to be breathing and registered
to be eligible for state contracts. If you bid
you stand a good chance of getting the con-
tract, but if you don’t bid you definitely
won’t get one.”
front of the camera have enhanced that
because I know how to make other women
look beautiful: from hair to makeup to
wardrobe. So, I feel that I have a gift with
imaging, and that’s kind of fundamental to
the music video process.
KW: Judyth Piazza says: I
would love to hear about
your time on The Fresh
Prince of Bel-Air. Were the
scripts written with a pre-
dominately white audience
or an African-American
audience in mind? Or was
this not a factor?
NL: I don’t think it was a
factor at all. Funny is funny:
black, white, yellow, pur-
ple. Funny is funny!
KW: Ola Jackson asks: How do you feel
about the number of black actors who are
often paired with white leading ladies in
movies, such as Will Smith, Wesley Snipes
and Denzel Washington?
NL: It is what it is. As long as the acting
is good, I can appreciate it. It would cer-
tainly would be great to see more films fea-
turing the black family and showing that we
are capable of having that unit strong and
present and beautiful, because that’s so
much of who we really are. For me, that’s
missing sometimes when I watch films. But
since Denzel and Will are superstars, studio
execs don’t necessarily see them as black.
They see them as superstars. I suspect they
pair them with a white or a Latina star
because that takes the pressure off their hav-
ing to market the movie as a black film,
which in my opinion is completely ridicu-
lous. But we still have a lot of growing and
maturing to do in terms of how we view
black people, the black family and black
filmmaking, because we shouldn’t be nar-
rowly pigeonholed. We are not just one
thing. We have so many different voices and
experiences. And on the flip side, there are
black men who are madly in love with white
women. God bless them, if that’s what
works for them. I just hope that we can
strike a balance that portrays black folks
and the black family in a light that’s not
extreme. Those are the types of characters
that I find myself attracted to.
KW: Marcia Evans says: I'm such a fan
and proud of yours. I can envision you
doing a project addressing many of the con-
cerns of black folks. Have you ever consid-
ered creating a project like “Single Ladies,”
the upcoming movie that Queen Latifah
plans to turn into a series?
NL: I am in constant search for that proj-
ect that speaks to me personally. And when
all the pieces come together properly, it’ll
happen.
Contracts
continued from page 2
Washington, Oregon, California, Alaska
and Idaho, from using race-based goals in
contracting – unless they could show com-
pelling evidence of previous discrimi-
nation. Washington state’s Initiative
200, passed in 2004, also barred any
form of affirmative action in employ-
ment, college admissions or contract-
ing.
“When all the minorities get left with
just 1 percent doesn’t that seem like dis-
crimination?” Rye says. “But it will
take a legal challenge to set this
straight.”
Michael Cobb says the court ruling is pre-
cisely why Oregon commissioned the dis-
parity study, and the update currently in
progress: to have the proof needed to get a
federal waiver to develop race-based goals
and a support program.
“We can’t just give contracts to select
people. But those who have bid have been
“We can’t just give contracts to select
people. But those who have bid have
been successful.”
Mooz-Lom
continued from page 5
such an accomplished actress give you a
different perspective when you direct a
music video?
NL: Directing music videos is all about
capturing images. I think my experiences in
Page 6 The Portland and Seattle Skanner February 2, 2011