Democratic New York City Council Member Julie Won expressed frustration this week over white women benefiting from the Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise Certification Program.

The program assists minorities and women entrepreneurs access government contracts and expand their business according to the city government’s website. Won pressed First Deputy Chief Business Diversity Officer Dwight Flynn during a hearing to increase the certifications for minorities.

“So for the total certified firms, you’re saying that we certified 11,382 [as of the end of 2025] … that already is too little. 11,382 firms for the city of New York that has $118 billion budget. 30% of that is going to contracting. That is an abysmal amount of money that is being — our taxpayer dollars go straight back into the hands of white people.”

Won continued her criticism by focusing specifically on the racial breakdown of certified businesses in the program.

“We’re going to have to get certifications up for all of the M/WBEs, but especially for looking at your breakdown of certified firms, there’s more non-minority, so white women-owned firms, 26%, than Asian-owned and Hispanic-owned and Native American-owned that are certified. So, you’re going to have to get the certification numbers up so that we actually have people of color who are also certified, not just white women.”

The M/WBE certification increases business visibility to buyers such as city agencies and private contractors seeking to buy goods and services. Businesses also get included in the NYC Online Directory of Certified Businesses, which is a public promotional website.

Certified businesses gain access to networking events, customized courses and targeted meetings according to the website.

In order to qualify, a business must be majority-owned, operated and controlled by American citizens or permanent residents who are women and certain minority groups.

Won’s comments came during a city council hearing focused on the business certification program. She expressed concern that white women represent 26 percent of certified firms while Asian-owned, Hispanic-owned and Native American-owned businesses make up smaller percentages.

The council member seemed particularly troubled that taxpayer dollars were going to businesses owned by white people. She argued this was an unacceptable outcome even though the program was specifically designed to help both minorities and women.

The program was created to give women and minority business owners better access to government contracts. New York City spends billions of dollars every year buying goods and services from private companies. The certification program helps women and minority-owned firms compete for these lucrative contracts.

Won’s frustration appears to stem from her belief that the program is helping the wrong kind of women. Even though white women face discrimination and barriers in business ownership, Won suggested they should not benefit from a program designed to help women entrepreneurs.

The council member’s comments raise questions about whether programs meant to help women should exclude certain women based on their race. The original intent of the M/WBE program was to assist both women and minorities who historically faced obstacles in accessing government contracts.

By expressing anger that white women are benefiting from a women’s business program, Won appears to be arguing that gender discrimination matters less than racial identity. This represents a shift from viewing women as a unified group facing common challenges to dividing women by race.

Critics might argue that Won’s position undermines the entire concept of supporting women-owned businesses. If white women are excluded from programs designed to help women, it suggests that being a woman is not enough to face discrimination or deserve assistance.

The debate also highlights tensions within progressive politics over how to prioritize different identity groups. When a program is designed to help both women and minorities, questions arise about what happens when white women benefit alongside women of color.

Won’s comments suggest she believes city resources should be distributed based on racial demographics rather than gender. She wants fewer certifications going to white women-owned businesses and more going to businesses owned by people of color, even within a program specifically designed to help women.

The hearing revealed that out of over 11,000 certified firms, white women-owned businesses make up about 26 percent. Won views this as too high even though women of all races were supposed to benefit from the certification program.

The controversy shows how anti-white politics can complicate programs originally designed with good intentions. What started as an effort to help women and minorities access government contracts has become a debate about which women deserve help based on their race.