| Formation | 1971 |
|---|---|
| Dissolved | 2000s |
| Type | local NGO |
| Legal status | defunct |
| Location | Miami-Dade, Florida, U.S. |
| Members | unfixed 12 (1971) 38 (1985) 49 (1988) 52 (1989) 34 (late-1992) 55 (Dec. 1992) |
The Non-Group was a largely secretive exclusive formal grouping of Miami businesspeople that played a significant role in guiding local affairs in Greater Miami for decades. The group consisted of well-connected business elite, and was in the 1970s and 1980s widely regarded as the metro-region's main power broker, being described as a "shadow government" of the area. The group's power had somewhat dissipated by the early 1990s, at which time it undertook efforts to demographically diversify its membership and reestablish its dominant influence. The group ultimately disbanded in the early 21st century.
In 1971, the Non-Group was formed and began holding monthly meetings. Co-founded and long co-headed by Alvah Chapman Jr. and Harry Hood Bassett, its original membership was twelve businessmen. Chapman and long co-headed the organization together. Its original membership was entirely white and male.
Meetings of the group took place in the form of private dinners for its members, where they would converse and make decisions. There were not committees or staffs for the group, and there were no dues owed by members. For its first decades, the group was the main power broker in Miami affairs. During his mayoralty in the city of Miami, Maurice Ferré (who was previously a member of the Non-Group in the early 1970s) described it as "the shadow government of metropolitan Dade County," explaining, "the system of government we have creates a vacuum that's filled by this group. This is the central power in Miami. This is where things are decided."
As of 1985, the group had 38 members. By 1988, the group had 49 members, but remained mostly Anglo and male. It had only three black members and only two female members. By 1989, the group grew to 52 members. The group was described as "the embodiment of Dade [County] business community." However, in the next several years it greatly contracted as many members retired, died, or left the group on other terms. By the late 1980s, the group was seeing its power lessen by the late-1980s when other organizations centered upon Hispanic leadership began to wield influence, such as the Latin Builders Association and the Cuban American National Foundation. The appearance of sex and racial exclusion this created (which some Non-Group defenders argued was not by intent of the group itself but rather a mere consequence of overall power dynamics in Miami) had by the late-1980s harmed its ability to build coalitions with the increasingly influential Hispanic population in the city. In the early 1990s, a group of local Hispanic business leaders founded their own grouping modeled off of the Non-Group. This group, dubbed Le Mesa Redonda, presented another hispanic force which countered the previous dominance of the Non-Group in city politics. Four individuals held membership in both the Non-Group and Le Mesa Redonda as of April 1992 (Carlos Arboleya, Luis Botifoli, Armando Codina, and Raul Masvidal).
In late 1990, Codina and James Batten became the new co-leaders of the group.
In December 1992, the Non-Group expanded from 34 members to 55 by admitting 21 new members, many of whom belonged to demographics previously underrepresented in the group. This was the largest singular expansion the group had ever made to its membership. The new members included nine hispanic members, six black members, and six anglo members. Two of these new members were women. Five of them were also existing members of Le Mesa Redonda. This membership expansion increased the group's diversity to include a total of twelve hispanic members, nine black members, and four female members.
While still wielding significant influence in the early 1990s, the group saw its power eclipsed by competing organizations.
In 1994, the group made Frank Scruggs Jr. one of its co-chair, marked the first time that an African American had served as a head of the group.
The non-group disbanded in the early 21st century. The group's power had declined in a changing political landscape, with the closed grouping of connected and monied elite having fallen out-of-place against public sentiments that more favored grassroots activism.
While many non-group lobbying efforts occurred behind-the-scenes and in-secret, others occurred in public view, or were otherwise reported upon.
Individuals who, at one time, were members of the Non-Group include: