Monday marks “Minority & Women Owned Business Advocacy Day” in New York state.

A press conference will take place on the topic at the state Capitol at noon, and networking opportunities will be available between 10 a.m. and 5 p.m. in the Legislative Office Building for the businesses, which are commonly known as MWBEs.  

The theme of the event is “Restorative Justice." 

“We know that the rates are very low in terms of MWBE participation,” state Assemblymember Rodneyse Bichotte Hermelyn told Capital Tonight, noting that 60% of taxpayers are women and minorities. “Yet, we literally get 5%, 10% participation in a lot of these projects. We want to break those barriers.”