The St. John’s University School Of Law’s Ronald H. Brown Center For Civil Rights And Economic Development Issues Q-626 Report

November 08, 2006

Finds Evidence of Significant Underrepresentation of Large Black and Latino-Owned Businesses in Queens

The Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development at St. John's University’s School of  Law has issued a comprehensive report entitled: “The Q-626 Report: A study analyzing the diversity of the 626 Largest Businesses, and the 105 Largest Minority Businesses, in Queens.”  The Report examines the diversity of the Queens business community.

The Q-626 Report had the following key findings:

  • 46% of the population of Queens is foreign born
  • 54% of the Queens’ population speaks a language other than English at home
  • Black and Latino labor participation in Queens is higher than Whites and Asians
  • In Queens, Blacks on average have higher family incomes than Whites
  • 46.6% of businesses in Queens are minority-owned
  • Minority businesses in Queens generate over $7 billion in aggregate sales
  • 105 largest minority businesses have aggregate sales of $2 billion
  • 82% of the 105 largest minority-owned businesses are located in the following five neighborhoods: Jamaica, Flushing, Long Island City, Maspeth and Woodside
  • 82% of the 105 largest minority-owned businesses are Asian owned
  • Only four Black-owned and nine Latino-owned businesses could be identified in the 105 largest minority-owned businesses

In summary, despite the recent Census data that heralded Blacks living in Queens as having higher incomes than Whites, the Q-626 Report shows that Black-owned and Latino-owned businesses are significantly underrepresented among the largest businesses in Queens. This report will be published in an upcoming issue of the St. John’s Law Review.  For an advance copy of the report, click on the link below:

For more information, please contact Leonard M. Baynes, Professor of Law and Director of The Ronald H. Brown Center for Civil Rights and Economic Development at (718) 990-6600 or baynesl@stjohns.edu.