CLEVELAND — Just before Rev. Al Sharpton began to speak at a rally outside of Cleveland City Hall calling for a Black-owned firm to be a key partner in the construction of Sherwin-Williams' global headquarters project on Tuesday, the Cleveland-based company released a statement responding to the protest.
“Sherwin-Williams has been meeting with Cleveland Mayor Justin Bibb since he was elected. His support of our Company over that time has been and continues to be steadfast," Sherwin-Williams Chairman and Chief Executive Officer John G. Morikis said in a statement. "While we received many attractive offers to relocate our new headquarters from several cities nationally, Mayor Bibb’s strong leadership and clear vision for Cleveland have only solidified our choice to stay and invest here. Working together with Mayor Bibb and his administration, we are focused on the right things, we are excited by what we have already accomplished, and we are confident that our continued partnership will achieve our shared goals of helping Cleveland, the region and Sherwin-Williams thrive for decades to come."
Sherwin-Williams also noted that it was hosted by the Urban League of Cleveland on Monday "to provide a joint update on the Building our Future project and the positive impact the project is having on the local community." Attendees at the event included:
- Justin Bibb, Cleveland Mayor
- Blaine Griffin, Cleveland City Council President
- Marsha Mockabee, President and CEO Urban League of Cleveland
- Ron Todd, Minority Affairs Liaison to Office of the Ohio State Governor
- Pernel Jones, Cuyahoga County Council, District 8
- Shakorie Davis, Urban League CAP Program Facilitator
- Rev. Dr. Stephen Rowan, Cleveland Bethany Baptist Church
- Pastor Anthony L. Small, Sr., Cleveland Starlight Missionary Baptist Church
- Pastor Jimmy L. Gates, Sr., Cleveland Zion Hill Baptist Church
Sherwin-Williams also said that its "deliberate and intentional process of ensuring diverse firms are included in the Building Our Future project" has resulted in $122 million in contracts to diverse firms with a commitment that is expected to exceed $180 million and engagement with 57 diverse firms on the project to date.
"It is unfortunate that some are using their personal agendas and animosities to drive a false narrative and cloud the positive impact the Building Our Future project is making on the Cleveland community now and for years to come," the company said.
According to a flyer for Tuesday's protest, the rally aimed to "urge the Mayor and the City Council to show the public where taxpayer dollars are being spent on the construction of The Sherwin-Williams Company's new global headquarters. Black-owned firm should be named key partner with major managerial responsibilities and higher earning potential."
Sherwin-Williams has broken ground on both their new downtown Cleveland headquarters and the Brecksville research and development center. Both facilities are slated to be completed in late 2024.
The Urban League of Greater Cleveland says it plans to continue its partnership with Sherwin-Williams.
“There are three criteria that we consider when engaging in public-private partnerships,” said Marsha A. Mockabee, President and Chief Executive Officer of the Urban League of Greater Cleveland, in a statement. “There must be an authentic commitment to diversity and inclusion, a demonstrated accountability to achieving the metrics, and the willingness to develop long-term strategies that empower communities and change lives. The Urban League is pleased to partner with Sherwin-Williams to bring its community impact commitment to fruition.”
3News sat down with Mockabee, who added that while she understands aspirational goals, there are certain processes and policies that should go in place first.
"You first have to create policy, because without policy, there's no teeth to hold people accountable, so that's the first step," Mockabee said. "I think the second step is, you have to make sure that there is a pipeline of the kind of talent that you're talking about that you want in those positions, and that's what the Urban League is doing in helping Sherwin-Williams with their commitment."
Mockabee said developing policy can allow people in the African American community to benefit from contracts and the "opportunities to work and grow and develop wealth."
She added that conversations with civil rights colleagues and with partners involved in the project have informed the Urban League's decision to stay aligned with local leadership and work with Sherwin-Williams.
"Our job, the Urban League is, we feel, to extend the benefit from that building into our communities in ways that even Sherwin-Williams doesn't necessarily see immediately," she said. "So we're that sort of broker in between to help Sherwin-Williams see how they can bring benefit into the communities, and the communities can benefit from them staying here as a headquartered organization."
You can view Rev. Sharpton's comments at Tuesday's rally in the video player above or YouTube player below.
3News' Dave "Dino" DeNatale contributed to this report.