National Minority Suppliers Development Council moves convention from Phoenix to Miami

A minority suppliers group that would have brought 7,000 convention attendees to Phoenix this fall has moved the meeting to Florida because of Arizona's new immigration law. The National Minority Suppliers Development Council, Inc. released a statement, which Phoenix officials received today.

The council is the latest of several out-of-town groups that have canceled Valley meetings because of the law. Metropolitan Phoenix risks losing as much as $90 million in hotel and convention business over the next five years because of the controversy, according to one Phoenix estimate. The stakes for Phoenix are particularly high because the city operates the Phoenix Convention Center and it owns the 1,000-room Sheraton Phoenix Downtown Hotel, which serves the convention center. Many of the hotels and resorts that would be boycott targets are also located in Phoenix. The minority suppliers group will hold its October national convention in Miami instead, the statement said.

The Arizona law "is inconsistent with the ideals and principles upon which the NMSDC operates, including valuing diversity and inclusion for all," the statement said.

Founded in 1972, the National Minority Suppliers Development Council matches more than 15,000 businesses owned by Asian, Black, Hispanic and Native Americans with member corporations that want to purchase goods and services, according to the group's website.

It will be difficult for Phoenix to replace the canceled events, because such meetings are usually booked years in advance, said Deputy City Manager David Krietor. The convention center is also having difficulty booking future events because of the publicity about the law, he said.

The sales office phones "have stopped ringing," he said.


http://www.azcentral.com/community/phoenix/articles/2010/05/26/20100526arizona-immigration-law-convention-canceled.html

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