A New York City politician has ignited controversy after expressing outrage that too many white women are benefiting from a government programme designed to support minority and female business owners.
Council Meeting Confrontation
Democratic Councilwoman Julie Won, a 35-year-old Korean American representing Queens' Long Island City, voiced her frustration during a November 18 council meeting focused on small business matters. The heated discussion centred on contract distribution through The City of New York Minority and Women-owned Business Enterprise programme, commonly known as M/WBE.
The programme specifically aims to assist minority 'and/or' female entrepreneurs in securing government contracts to expand their businesses, according to official city documentation. Eligibility requires that 'at least 51 percent of your business must be owned, operated and controlled by U.S. citizens or U.S. permanent residents who are women and/or members of designated minority groups.'
Statistical Breakdown Sparks Outrage
Despite programme guidelines that don't restrict white women from applying, Won directly challenged Dwight Flynn, New York City's first deputy chief business diversity officer, about the certification numbers. 'Looking at your breakdown of certified firms, there's more non-minorities, so white-woman-owned firms - 26 percent - than Asian-owned, Hispanic-owned and Native American-owned that are certified,' Won stated during the meeting.
The councilwoman didn't mince words when delivering her ultimatum: 'So, you're gonna have to get the certification numbers up so we actually have people of colour who are also certified, not just white women.'
Observers noted that Flynn appeared visibly stunned by Won's direct approach, staring blankly at her before formulating his response.
Taxpayer Dollars Under Scrutiny
Won further escalated her criticism by questioning the overall impact of the programme's current certification rates. She revealed that only 11,382 firms were certified under the scheme as of 2025, despite New York City operating with a massive $188 billion budget where 30 percent is allocated to contracting.
'That is an abysmal amount of money that is being - our taxpayer dollars going straight back into the hands of white people,' Won declared, expressing concern that the programme wasn't achieving its intended diversity objectives.
Flynn attempted to address her concerns by stating that all M/WBE applications are processed as received, but committed to providing more detailed information about certification numbers relative to the broader business landscape.
Historical Context and Personal Background
The controversy emerges against the backdrop of previous revelations about Won's husband, Eugene Noh, who served as her campaign manager. In 2023, it was disclosed that Noh had been banned from X (formerly Twitter) over a racist post made in 2011 when he was 20 years old.
Additional tweets uncovered by media outlets showed Noh sharing content about homosexuality and disabilities that would now be considered offensive. Noh later acknowledged his past behaviour, stating: 'A decade ago as a young man, I said and did many things that were obnoxious, attention-seeking or flat-out offensive - a lot of which I regret right now as a father and as a husband.'
The councilwoman's office declined to comment when approached by The Daily Mail regarding the recent contract allocation controversy.
