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2021-02-03 Diversity Commission MinutesCITY OF EDMONDS DIVERSITY COMMISSION February 3, 2021 Meeting conducted via Zoom COMMISSIONERS PRESENT Ardeth Weed, Chair Dean Olson, Vice -Chair Donnie Griffin Nikki Okimoto Glaros Mindy Woods Alison Alfonzo Pence Alberto Orejel Malfav6n Sarah Mixson Caitlin Chung Student Rep Councilmember Luke Distelhorst, ex officio COMMISSIONERS ABSENT Sekou Kon6-excused GUESTS PRESENT: Angie Feser Pat Valle Eric Soiset George Bennett Vivian Olson — Councilmember STAFF PRESENT Patrick Doherty, Director Megan Luttrell, Program Coordinator Economic Development & Community Services Arwen Marohn, Diversity Commission Coordinator 6:00 P.M. — Call to Order and Land Acknowledgement: "We acknowledge the original inhabitants of this place, the Sdohobsh (Snohomish)people and their successors the Tulalip Tribes, who since time immemorial have hunted, fished, gathered, and taken care of these lands. We respect their sovereignty, their right to self-determination, and we honor their sacred spiritual connection with the land and water." - City Council Land Acknowledgment 1. Roll Call: Ardeth called the meeting to order at 6:01 p.m. Dean read the land acknowledgement. 2. Approval of Agenda: Correction from Dean: "hate speech" at Item 10a. Agenda approved by consensus. 3. Approval of January 6, 2021 Summary: Item #7, Ardeth purchased 10 books not 12. Approved by consensus. 4. Public Comment: Eric Soiset who has lived in Edmonds for 15 years, read a statement (see attached) that covered his thoughts on how we, as a community, need to keep pushing toward more justice and equitable time in Edmonds. He's had conversations with POC and LGTBQ+ and they feel unsafe in downtown Edmonds. The community needs to take a stand against white supremacy and hate groups and let them know they are not welcome in this community. His recommendations: 1. Formal statement from the City leaders denouncing white supremacy and hate groups 2. Recommends that the City create rules that white supremacists and hate groups cannot take advantage of city resources 3. Employment should be contingent on not being a Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 1 member of one of these groups. Local government needs to stand behind people with concrete actions. Donnie suggestion his written statement be included in our minutes. Eric will email Ardeth his complete statement. George Bennett thanked the Commission for the work that they do. He is a proponent of much of the work but is also takes issue with some of work being done. He recognizes there is a deep divide in Edmonds and would like to learn, assist and share to help create better communications. 5. Presentation about upcoming PROS Plan: Angie Feser, Parks & Recreation Director 2022 Park Plan process - requesting consideration for a representative from the Diversity Commission and help with defining purpose/process moving forward. They want to focus on the gap analysis work with the Diversity Commission and the deadline is end of February for Council approval. RCO deadline is March 1. Community engagement is a big piece of this. A slideshow presentation was provided Potential Focus Areas: • Parks systems/facilities • Recreation Programs • Parkland Acquisition • Maintenance & Operations • Equity/Access (programs & facilities) Thoughts from Commissioners: Alison requested information regarding the new Civic park. She has been soliciting all the funding for the playground area through state legislature. The funding needed was stated as $400,000 and now she is aware of it being only $250,000. Angie responded saying that we do need the $400,000 to make sure the equity and inclusion part is included and thanked Alison for her work in fundraising. Alison also asked about the bathroom design and if the restrooms could be expanded to include adult size tables for those who need that option. Angie responded design of the building is not complete and they are still working on this. Currently there are six unisex restrooms included in the design. She was glad that Alison brought this to her attention and will keep this in mind as they move forward. Donnie mentioned that there are few, if any, parks & recreation and programs slated for Southeast HWY99 community, which is our most diverse community within Edmonds. He would like to see a culturally competent contractor hired for this process. He mentioned that the list of stakeholders is all traditional, but there are opportunities to put out the word to community groups, particularly in communities of color. He emphasized that racial and disability related issues in our parks need to be addressed and that staff need training to be able to address these needs. Dean has come accessibility issues that he will email to Angie. Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 2 Alison volunteered to be the Diversity Commission volunteer for working with Angie and the Parks & Rec Department. 6. Update from the city: Patrick asked Angie to summarize the Arts Commission grant process and also mentioned that the Youth Commission is adjusting their meeting dates to participate with this planning. Angie said the one-time grant program developed last year just closed on 28' of January and that they had a good response. They will be looking at all the applications and will do a call for submissions again in summer months. Their focus is on equity & social justice in the community and to support local artists. Patrick shared that the Mayor is moving forward on Highway 99 community renewal planning project and is looking for consultant services. They are looking for creating little City Hall in that area and are in the process of touring some locations. A proposal will be developed and delivered to City Council for approval. This is extra work being done outside the current community renewal plan. The Mayor will be continuing his monthly neighborhood Zoom meetings. The Mayor's State of the City Address is on website. Last Friday the City sent out a postcard, in five languages, to all businesses in city to encourage them to apply for the Corona virus relief program. Luke mentioned that last week the Housing Commission wrapped up work and passed all 15 recommendations. He's excited for the potential to expand the community city staff on Highway 99. 7. Budget Update: Megan shared that there is $2000 for grants and $3100 left in the budget for this year. 8. Old Business: a) Toolkit Distribution Plan — Patrick just issued press release today. There was a comment that a lot of resources were intense and deep and didn't seem like a low barrier access resource. Arwen will continue to add to what Courtney created, as this is a living document. Note annotation and date when material is added and updated. The subcommittee will continue to assess the toolkit and implementation. It is available on the Diversity Commission website. b) Films: Commissioners needed to volunteer to host/Q&A after films - i. February 21st— Outside the House - Host & Q&A Dean (captions?) ii. March 2I't — Teach Us All —Host & Q&A Sarah iii. April 18t' —Homestretch — Host & Q&A: Mindy Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 3 iv. May 16" I Learn America Host & Q&A: Alberto 9. Equity and Justice Task Force and Mayor's response: Pat Valle shared that the report was published in my Edmonds news on Tuesday. The Mayor is committed to the recommendations made in the report. The Task Force is happy with the final report but not necessarily with the process of disclosing it. They felt it could have used more refined before becoming public and would have liked to have a conversation with the Mayor prior to its release. There will be continued work to help craft some of the information/documentation for new Police Chief. This will continue to be an ongoing process. The Mayor pointed out it's a handful of people writing in with some push back, but the larger majority, who are not as vocal, are supporting this work Dean read the interview with the Mayor and Mindy shared her thoughts that the Task Force did a great job! 10. Subgroup Reports: a) Policy — Patrick shared the City attorneys responded to recommendations the subgroup made regarding establishing "hate speech" as a crime. They concluded that it is only considered a crime if there is a threat or action of violence in association with the hate speech. This upholds the I" amendment for free speech. Mindy shared that The Southern Poverty Law Center has a map that shares all hate groups throughout the US (https://www.splcenter.org/hate-map). Luke shared that in his day job with transit department, he has to respond to situations that include hate speech that it is a crime if accompanied by threat of violence b) Partnership & Outreach — Toolkit released on February 3'1 c) Events — no report d) Place -making Highway 99 — no report Patrick recommended each of these subgroups formalize set times/dates on a regular schedule to meet. 11. New Business: a) Annual Report — Dean and Ardeth will be delivering the annual report this year, which will be discussed at the retreat and will later be presented to the City Council. b) Projected cultural events/dates to be recognized — Arwen has a list of cultural events to be recognized and will send that to the Commission for their input and help. One key day in October that the Mayor wants to recognize is Indigenous Peoples Day. Shannon Burley has reached out to the Diversity Commission to help with planning for this event. Patrick suggested we look ahead each month as we plan on acknowledging these key dates/months. c) Quick response to incidents from Chair & Vice -Chair — Ardeth requested guidance in how to respond to incidents of discrimination, etc., that may happen in between Commission meetings. Patrick said we usually post them on the City Facebook page. Originally the Commission had a template for these types of responses that the entire commission had pre - approved. The last two years the commission has deputized Chair and Vice Chair to craft a Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 4 message on behalf of the commission. We can discuss at retreat on how we approach in the future. Patrick has original template that he will send to Ardeth in the meantime. d) Roles & responsibilities of subgroups- Patrick covered that in the subgroup reports section. Alison asked if there is anything in writing for each group on what they are doing? Patrick shared that the subgroup comes up with what they want to work on and that during the retreat they can decide what they want to work on together for the year. e) Retreat Topics — 1. Team building ice breaker 2. Annual Report 3. Indigenous Peoples day 4. Protocol for response to racial incidents 5. Importance of visibility of Diversity Commission throughout the city - writing for My Edmonds News and overall outreach plan 6. Reboot "I am Edmonds" 7. Push for accessibility and inclusion 8. K-12 holocaust education — Sen. to speak 9. Speakers/continuing education — do we want periodical speaker or continuing education component to commission meetings 10. Subgroup focus 11. Breakout brainstorm for over the next 18 months 12. Scheduled subgroup meetings 13. Quarterly speakers 14. Outreach - Mountlake Terrace Diversity Commission, Communities of Color Coalition, Youth Commission and more Patrick asked if the Commission would like a facilitator? Michele Osborn has done ours in the past. The Commission approved $300 for a facilitator. Mindy requested that we start looking by asking Courtney or Rita. 12. Commissioners Corners: • Mindy: Commended Donnie on MLK Event and Lift Every Voice Legacy. She shared that it is Black History Month and that she provided list of non -traumatizing movies to add to the Diversity Commission website. • Dean is working on a bill on statewide regarding closed captioning in all public places for accommodation. • Sarah missed being part of the last month meeting. • Alberto is on team Zoom calls all day and finds this one pleasant to be part of • Ardeth said the library is having a full day on equity, diversity and inclusion training. Arwen contacted the Edmonds Sno-Isle Library about the film selection for this year. They will be putting together a list of books to go with the films we are screening. Told them I would add them as supporters. Edmonds Bookshop is also sharing and would like to collaborate. Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 5 Arwen requested an Honorarium for Darnell Lamont Walker, since he gave us his morning for free and will be joining us for a Q&A after watching his film. The Commission agreed by consensus to grant him $150. Adiourn: Ardeth adjourned the meeting at 8:09 PM — Next meeting Retreat Wednesday, March 3, 2021, 4:00 pm. Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 6 Eric Soiset statement presented during Public Comment at the 2/3/21 Diversity Commission Meeting. With the election of Joe Biden and the overwhelming selection of Democratic candidates in our city, I feel we need to keep pushing towards a more just and equitable life for all Edmonds residents. This is not a time to sit back and think the struggle is done. We must come together to repudiate the hate and fear pushed on us as a means to divide. President -Elect Biden has called to "restore the soul of America" and "Rebuild the backbone of the nation". This cannot be achieved from the top down. It must come, as all real change, from the will of the people, from the grassroots, from the community. I have had conversations with People of Color, with LGBTQIA+ people about how they feel unsafe just walking around or going out to eat in downtown Edmonds. This is wrong and needs to be addressed by the community as a whole, but more specifically by the white majority of residents. This is our problem to solve and only with the concerted effort of our community can we make a difference. The City of Edmonds needs to take a stand against white supremacy and hate groups that are active in the area. The FBI has stated that most domestic terrorism is linked to white supremacist movements and they are responsible for more homicides than any other domestic groups. The leadership and community of Edmonds needs to publicly and explicitly state that hate groups, specifically groups called out by the Southern Poverty Law Center, are not welcome in our town. All I wish is for all residents of our community to be allowed to live in peace, raise their families and enjoy our great city without regard to the color of their skin or whom they choose to love. Actions I would like to see the leadership of Edmonds take: 1. A formal statement by the city that white supremacist groups including, but not limited to, The Ku Klux Klan, the Proud Boys, The American Identity Movement, and AWD and their ideologies are not welcome in Edmonds 2. Rules that these hate groups are not allowed to take advantage of city resources — such as renting space and time in our parks, co-opting our streets for parades, marches, or rallies. 3. Employment in the City of Edmonds is contingent upon not being a member of any of these groups. Employment will be terminated if an individual is found to be an active member or supplying material support to these groups. Meeting Summary Diversity Commission February 3, 2021 Page 7