[Congressional Record Volume 168, Number 55 (Tuesday, March 29, 2022)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Page E312]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




  HONORING L.A. BLACK BUSINESS ASSOCIATION CHAIRMAN OF THE BOARD EARL 
                           ``SKIP'' COOPER II

                                 ______
                                 

                            HON. KAREN BASS

                             of california

                    in the house of representatives

                        Tuesday, March 29, 2022

  Ms. BASS. Madam Speaker, today I rise to acknowledge the legacy of 
Earl ``Skip'' Cooper II as he retires from the Black Business 
Association of Los Angeles.
  For the last 50 years, Skip Cooper has fought tirelessly to break 
down barriers and uplift not only African American businesses, but all 
minority businesses. He has developed programs to assure that 
businesspeople, artists, and entrepreneurs had access to the financing, 
contracting, mentoring, and support that it takes to succeed, and he 
has served as an advisor to both the Latin and Asian business 
associations in Los Angeles prior to their formation. As a result, he 
has played a pivotal role in the success of countless businesses across 
the Los Angeles region.
  Young Skip had a newspaper delivery route by age I0, and he never 
forgot the power of relationships and mentoring. Skip would go on to 
serve as a medic in the Vietnam War, and he returned home from service 
to study at Oakland's Merritt College, where he became one of the first 
in the country to earn an AA degree in African American Studies. He 
would later earn bachelor's and MBA degrees as well.
  Early in his career, Skip interned at a Los Angeles area minority 
business resource center where he saw the need to promote and support 
minority-owned businesses. At the end of Skip's internship, he joined 
the staff of what became the Los Angeles Economic Development Corp. 
where, as program manager, Skip oversaw a state initiative that helped 
minority owned businesses secure purchasing contracts with public and 
private sector organizations. That led him to join the BBA where, in 
1976, he embarked on its first trade mission to Washington, D.C.
  Over decades of advocacy, Skip has had a significant role in the 
passage and implementation of legislation and regulations at the 
federal, state and local levels. He worked closely with legislators, 
especially the late California Asm. Gwen Moore and the late U.S. Rep. 
Parren Mitchell, to pass laws to address the historic disadvantage of 
minority businesses that had been shut out of public and private 
programs and funding opportunities.
  The BBA will continue its annual salutes to Black history, Black 
women and Black music, its twice-annual veterans' procurement 
conference, and its e-commerce venture: a Black business shopping 
guide, all of which will further Skip's legacy, and his lifelong 
commitment to economic empowerment for people of color.

                          ____________________