U.S. recession pains minorities, but hope persists | Reuters: CHICAGO (Reuters) - The recession has delivered a disproportionate blow to blacks and Hispanics, yet minorities may be more optimistic about the economy than most Americans and many feel they have earned a place at the corporate table.
A pair of surveys released this week carried some hopeful signs for minorities, who in recent years have seen African-Americans occupy top executive posts at an expanding roster of companies, including Time Warner Inc and Xerox Corp.
But in factories and the lower rungs of corporate America, workplace diversity often is a secondary priority, according to Marc Morial, president of the National Urban League, a civil rights group holding its annual meeting this week in Chicago.
Blacks and Hispanics have suffered disproportionately in the recession because they often lack seniority, and they are heavily represented in the hard-hit retail, manufacturing and auto industries, Morial said in an interview.
