A recent “report card” by the Asian American Institute (“Ryan, Stroger get failing grades from Asian group,” News, March 13) misjudged the record of the Cook County Board president’s office, labeling “unsatisfactory” our efforts on behalf of Asian-Americans. That grade was undeserved, and here is why.
When I took office in 1994, Asian-American participation on all competitively bid contracts stood just above $2 million, or 1.78 percent. Last year Asian-American participation in contracts had increased to more than $44 million, or 10 percent of all competitively bid contracts. Credit the county’s aggressive enforcement of our minority set-aside ordinance and outreach by our Office of Contract Compliance.
Cook County benefits greatly from Asian-Americans in key policymaking posts. A few examples include: Dr. Yogi Mahendra, deputy director of Cook County Hospital; Dr. Eupil Choi, deputy chief medical examiner; and Dr. Francis Muthu, deputy director of the President’s Office of Employment Training. Asian-Americans serve at all levels of county government, totaling about 17.5 percent of the workforce.
Working with AAI, Cook County’s Complete County Committee hosted a census outreach event on Jan. 19 in Chicago’s Chinese community. At Cook County Hospital, we staff a translation unit that handles about 1,000 translation requests a year from people of Asian descent. And the hospital employs a full-time medical translator who speaks four Chinese dialects and is on call 24 hours a day.
These are just a few of the points about how Asian-Americans get access and are being heard in Cook County government, which we addressed in January, when we promptly answered AAI’s survey. Of course AAI’s graders are free to weigh these facts–or not weigh them–as they see fit. But I found it curious that none of the officials who refused to answer the AAI survey drew the “unsatisfactory” label.
Although we always strive to do better, our record of service and openness to the Asian-American community clearly compares favorably to our governmental counterparts. Perhaps the AAI can address these points–and some of the weaknesses in its grading system–the next time it informs the public on these vital issues. As always, my door is open to the Asian-American community and its leaders
