Parker stirs pot with remark
Says talk’s main point about diversity fell on deaf ears
State Sen. Kevin Parker stirred controversy on Thursday at the Renaissance Albany Hotel while talking about the upcoming legislative session for the Business Council of New York’s government affairs planning meeting.
“What I said was, ‘Don’t show up to a meeting with four white guys,’” the Brooklyn Democrat told the Times Union on Friday.
The remark, he said, was part of a larger point about the need for companies and organizations to diversify, while also highlighting the diversity of the incoming Democratic majority in the chamber. Parker explained that he was trying to be “entertaining” with how he talked about the subject.
“I’m disappointed that anybody was offended by my comment,” Parker said. “It was meant to be provocative and not offensive, but I stand by my point.”
Parker is a front runner to lead the Senate’s energy committee in the upcoming legislative session, having previously served as the ranking Democratic member
on the committee. If he is elevated to chairman, energy industry lobbyists would have a significant interest soliciting his support for their priorities.
He noted that the makeup of the Democratic conference is in stark contrast with the chamber’s outgoing Republican majority, which has no minority members. The incoming freshman class of Democrats includes the first Iranianamerican, Indianamerican and Taiwaneseamerican senators.
Parker said the fact people in attendance felt the need to “snitch” on him to the Times Union was proof positive of the need for diversity, as he felt the larger issue he was raising fell on deaf ears in
the mostly white crowd. He said that a few people of color thanked him for his comments when he was done.
He did acknowledge that black and Latino senators might be more comfortable engaging with black and Latino lobbyists, who are not the majority in Albany. “It’s not that my colleagues can’t talk to white guys,” Parker added.
He also advised the crowd on Thursday that the turnover in the chamber was an opportunity for people with business
before the state to educate the newer members of the Senate Democratic Conference about their interests.
Parker, who was first elected to the Senate in 2002, occasionally found himself in hot water due to his temper during his first decade in office. He has not had public controversy in more recent years, and has instead become known for his public frankness.
▶ David.lombardo@timesunion.com 518-4545427 ■ @Poozer87 ■