U.S. Minority Contractors Association President and CEO Larry Bullock (right) and Lindsey Gayles from the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago, attending the 2015 USMCA anniversary awards banquet.

Chicago Mayor Rahm Emanuel (left) welcomes Larry Bullock (middle) to the city of Chicago’s Vendor Fair in 2014.

Larry Bullock doesn’t just try to put things in perspective for minority business owners—he tries to flip their perspectives by 180 degrees.

“We want minority-owned businesses to put their names on the front of the check as opposed to the back of the check,” says Bullock, President and CEO of U.S. Minority Contractors Association (USMCA). “We want to help them understand exactly what they need to succeed.”

Helping others thrive is the mission of USMCA and a personal passion for Bullock, a minister, civil rights activist and former legislator who created the association 26 years ago. Based in Barrington, Ill., USMCA has grown to include five chapters in the Midwest and a newly opened chapter in Atlanta.

The goal of all the chapters is to assist minority businesses and prepare the next generation to flourish in construction, professional services, architecture, engineering and design. The first step, he says, is helping contractors, subcontractors and other professionals to increase their visibility.

“People want to help minority firms succeed, but the biggest complaint you hear from general contractors, especially non-minorities, is ‘We can’t find them,’” Bullock says. “We want to be the hub that connects them and helps them build capacity.”

One major non-minority-owned company USMCA works closely with is F.H. Paschen, one of the largest construction companies in Chicago.

“Larry is an energetic individual who cares and goes beyond the standard when helping his members,” says Leo Wright, Senior Vice President of F.H. Paschen. “Once you become part of the team, you will have him at your side, networking and providing education and the skills needed to prosper. He has connected both large and small companies together to enhance opportunities for both.”

Seeking greater opportunities is a recurring theme in Bullock’s life. Growing up in the 1950s and 1960s in Winston-Salem, N.C., he attended the best schools he could get into—even it if meant being the only black student in the building.

First in His Class

“My middle name should be ‘First Black,’ because I was the first black in my high school, first black quarterback there, first black to graduate from Catawba College and so on,” he says. “That was my mantra throughout the ‘60s, ‘70s and ‘80s.”

After graduating with a degree in political science, he moved to Chicago in 1969 and earned a master’s degree in public administration from Roosevelt University. He joined Jesse Jackson’s Operation PUSH, became involved in Illinois politics and was elected in 1978 to the Illinois House of Representatives, where he served four terms.

During a political race at the height of the Watergate scandal, Bullock was asked by a Jet magazine reporter why he wanted to go into politics. Bullock replied by quoting a line attributed to English philosopher Edmund Burke: “All that is necessary for the triumph of evil is that good men do nothing.”

Making a Difference

“I believe I can make a difference,” Bullock says today. “One of the things Jesse Jackson laid on me heavy was, ‘You have an obligation to give back.’ He told me, ‘Martin Luther King Jr. died so that you could get your education.’ And that always stuck with me—the obligation to give back and make a difference.”

After politics, he launched April Cobra Enterprises, Inc., a general contracting, management and real estate development firm. Before long, he noticed that many minority entrepreneurs were struggling, which led him to form USMCA.

“Most minority firms face unique challenges because of two things: a lack of capital and a lack of expertise,” he says. “Our thrust is to help them build capacity, and to develop and succeed.”

USMCA assists minority-owned contractors by helping them understand the ins and outs of running their businesses—especially how to get “bid-ready.”

“Equally important is helping them become minority-certified with local, county or federal agencies,” he says. “That’s critical. Getting that minority certification means they’re able to access projects and invitations to bid.”

The Next Generation

The association also does a broad range of advocacy work for minority-owned businesses and has launched a separate science, technology, engineering and mathematics (STEM) Educational Foundation curriculum for minority students in the Chicago area.

“The template is simple: We call it ‘mentorship, internship and scholarship,’ ” he says. “We need to identify and catch these students early and guide them toward success.”

Today’s minority students may not run into the same level of racism Bullock and others experienced in past decades. But he says people still need to be vigilant in ending discrimination in the world of construction and beyond.

“Jim Crow didn’t leave. Jim Crow just changed its face. There are still forces in this country that do not embrace diversity in the marketplace,” he says.

“Yes, all lives matter. But historically in this country, black lives matter less. So, I say to people around us: As entrepreneurs, we can make a difference. We can employ people and we can create opportunities. We owe it to the community that we were supported by to give back.”

In addition to his work with USMCA, Bullock keeps busy in his roles as a husband, father, grandfather and ordained minister. He’s the senior pastor at the non-denominational Living Faith Cathedral Worship Center Church in Palatine, Ill.

Being a pastor isn’t that much different than helping minority business owners, he says. The goal with both is working hard and finding a sense of “fierce urgency” that will bring about positive change in society.

“Those who don’t know me, particularly non-minorities, might think, ‘This guy’s pushy and forceful.’ But those who know me say, ‘He’s so passionate about what he’s doing,’” he adds.

“Whether it’s in the pulpit or in public, I’m determined to leave the world better than I found it. That’s my social contract. That’s my moral obligation,” he says.