Cleveland partner José Feliciano was quoted in an April 18, 2009, Cleveland Plain Dealer article, "Hispanic Leaders Want a Larger Presence in Greater Cleveland's Business Leadership."
According to the article, Hispanic business leaders are tired of being excluded from the upper echelons of Greater Cleveland's business community. Gustavo "Gus" Hoyas, board chairman of the Hispanic Business Association, said the Greater Cleveland Partnership—the region's largest chamber of commerce—doesn't do enough to boost business opportunities for Hispanics.
Hoyas gives voice to discontent that stems from Hispanic growth in population and wealth, said Feliciano, a member of the partnership's board and chairman of the Hispanic Roundtable of Cleveland. Those gains naturally lead to a greater desire for more seats at the business-leadership table, Feliciano said. "We have not been included," said Feliciano. Business leaders aren't purposely ignoring Hispanics, he said. But too often "they just don't think of us." He also believes that the partnership's top corporate leaders are sincere in strategies to boost black and Hispanic businesses.