[*This meeting was joined in progress* Diversity and Inclusion Meeting on June 18, 2024.]
[00:00:02]
I KNOW IT STARTS WITH AN E, BUT I JUST COULD NOT, I KEPT THINKING ERICA, FOR SOME REASON.
SHE DOES A LOT WITH THE SCHOOLS TOO.
HOW DO WE FEEL ABOUT SANTA? I DON'T BELIEVE IN SANTA ANYMORE.
AND SO DEFINITELY WANNA BE MINDFUL OF THAT AS WELL.
UM, WELL, I THINK SANTA'S PRESENCE WOULD IS, IS FINE, BECAUSE THERE ARE A LOT OF PEOPLE WHO LIKE TO HAVE THEIR KIDS TALK TO SANTA.
UM, OR MAYBE PARENTS LIKE TO TELL SANTA WHAT THEIR KIDS HAVE DONE.
I I, I WOULDN'T EXCLUDE SANTA BECAUSE SOME PEOPLE DO NOT BELIEVE IN THAT THING SOMETIMES ALSO, I AGREE WITH YOU.
I WOULD NOT EXCLUDE BECAUSE WE DON'T WANT, THAT'S NOT THE POINT OF THIS, BUT, YOU KNOW, SANTA CAN BE BLACK.
SANTA CAN BE ASIAN, CAN BE HISPANIC.
ARE THERE ANY OTHER HOLIDAY FIGURES THAT MIGHT BE FUN TO INCLUDE
BUT IS SANTA THE ONLY ONE? NO.
I KNOW WE DO SOME RESEARCH, DO SOME DIGGING.
YOU THOUGHT YOU WERE GETTING A PRESENTATION HOMEWORK.
UH, AND THEN ONE THING THAT JUST CAME TO MY MIND, LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE TEMPLATE OPEN, WE, WE ARE STARTING MAKING CONNECTIONS.
MAYBE WE CAN EVEN REACH OUT TO THEM JUST TO SAY, YOU KNOW, WE'D JUST LIKE YOUR OPINION ON, YOU KNOW, THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
WHAT ARE SOME THINGS WE COULD DO? WHAT ARE, HOW DO YOU, HOW ARE HOLIDAYS CELEBRATED IN DIFFERENT PARTS OF THE WORLD? THAT'S A GREAT IDEA.
SO I WAS SO INSPIRED BY THE TURNOUT AND WE HAD THAT PROCLAMATION.
BUT THE, YOU COULD JUST SEE THAT FEEL THE ENERGY TOO, IN THAT WHEN THAT POPULATION, THEY WERE REALLY HAPPY.
UM, I GUESS ANOTHER AREA IS THE ACTIVITIES THAT WE OFFER.
SO I THINK IN PREVIOUS YEARS, WE'VE DONE LETTERS TO SANTA.
SO AGAIN, THE EXAMPLE FROM THE LIBRARY ABOUT COLORING A LANTERN OR, YOU KNOW, LEARNING ABOUT KWANZA THROUGH AN ACTIVITY OR, MM-HMM.
I'M LIKE, I CANNOT SPEAK TO MY GOODNESS GRACIOUS.
UM, YOU KNOW, LEARNING A LITTLE BIT, BUT JUST HAVING ACTIVITIES FOR KIDS TO ENJOY THAT'S NOT SO SPECIFIC.
IS THERE ANYTHING THAT Y'ALL HAVE SEEN AT OTHER EVENTS OR ON PINTEREST, IF YOU WILL,
FOR ME, I WOULD HAVE TO GO BACK AND THINK ABOUT IT.
SO WE'RE GONNA HAVE HOMEWORK FOR THE NEXT.
JAMIE, DO YOU WANNA SEND ME MAYBE SOME OF YOUR QUESTIONS OR Y'ALL'S HIGH LEVEL, LIKE, UM, ASK FOR? YEAH.
THAT WAY I CAN SEND IT OVER AND I CAN TAKE SOME TIME TO THINK ABOUT IT.
UM, BECAUSE I KNOW YOU GUYS WANNA GET ONTO YOUR STRATEGY, UM, OR STRATEGIC PLAN REVIEW AS WELL.
BUT, UM, JUST WANTED TO OPEN THE DIALOGUE WITH Y'ALL.
START WITH CREATIVE JUICES FLOWING, UH, BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, THE HOLIDAYS WILL BE HERE BEFORE WE KNOW IT.
AND SO WE WANNA MAKE SURE THAT WE'RE BOOKING TALENT AND BOOKING VENDORS, BUT KEEPING IN MIND THIS KIND OF FRESH, UH, APPROACH TO MAKE IT MORE INCLUSIVE.
SO, SO YOU ARE WILL, UM, THERE IS THE POSSIBILITY TO ACTUALLY PAY MUSICIANS AND HIRE A BAND AND YEAH.
SO, UM, I'LL DO WHAT CHRISTIE REQUESTED.
I'LL SEND KIND OF THE KEY AREAS THAT WE TALKED ABOUT, UM, BEING ABLE TO HAVE SOME INFLUENCE THERE.
MARIACHI CHRISTMAS WOULD BE, I WAS JUST THINKING THAT.
[00:05:01]
REALLY COOL.ISN'T THE GORGEOUS
THEY CAN DISPLAY ANY STYLE, OR WE'RE NOT GONNA PAY YOU TO PERFORM
FOR YOUR FEEDBACK, I'LL, I'LL BE STANDING NEXT TO THE STAGE THIS YEAR JUST IN CASE.
WE'RE EXCITED TO PARTNER WITH Y'ALL AND, UM, BRING Y'ALL INTO THE FOLD AS WE END THIS AMAZING TIME IN THE COMMUNITY.
SO APPRECIATE YOUR INPUT, APPRECIATE YOUR EFFORTS THAT YOU'LL BE PUTTING IN ALSO
IT'S GONNA COME FROM CHRISTIE.
UH, DAN, I THINK WE'RE GONNA TAKE A QUICK, UH, FIVE MINUTE BREAK.
YOU HAVE, UM, ALL THE FISHER? YES.
SO THEN WE'RE GONNA START WITH, UH, STAND.
UH, I, I, AND THE BEGINNING OF THE MEETING WAS INTERESTING.
BUT YOU KNOW, WHAT I CAN LET YOU KNOW IS THAT MAYBE IF WE CAN KIND OF, YOU KNOW, TAKE FINAL COMMENTS NOW AND SEE IF THERE'S ANY ADDITIONS TO THIS DRAFT.
UH, I CAN CREATE A POWERPOINT DRAFT WHICH COVERS THE MAIN POINTS SO THAT YOU'LL HAVE LIKE A 20 TO 30 MINUTE PRESENTATION, POWERPOINT PRESENTATION THAT YOU CAN GIVE TO THE, UH, CITY COUNCIL FOR YOUR SESSION ON JULY 18TH.
UM, THE BAD NEWS IS, I, I'M ON VACATION OUT OF THE COUNTRY, UH, JUNE 26TH TO JULY 14TH.
SO THAT'S ONE OF THE REASONS WHY I WOULD GET THIS DONE WITHIN A WEEK AND GET IT TO YOU REALLY SOON.
AND THEN IF, YOU KNOW, IF ANY OF YOU HAVE LIKE POWERPOINT SKILLS AND JUST NEED TO MODIFY THE WORDING, YOU CAN DO THAT.
UH, BUT THE IDEA WOULD BE THAT THE POWERPOINT PRESENTATION WOULD BE SUMMARY, UH, OF THE PLAN, OF THE PROPOSED PLAN.
AND I'D ALSO ADD SOME IMAGES INTO IT, LOOK PRETTY, UH, BUT, YOU KNOW, I CAN PROBABLY GET THAT WHIPPED OUT, UH, WITHIN A FEW DAYS.
AND I THINK THEN THAT WAY YOU CAN DO IS YOU CAN SEND DRAFT, YOU KNOW, TO THEM IN TERMS OF IF THEY WANT SOMETHING TO READ IN TERMS OF THE VERBIAGE AND THE DETAILS.
BUT THEN YOU'LL HAVE A NICE 2025 MINUTE PRESENTATION THAT YOU CAN ACTUALLY PRESENT AT YOUR JULY 18TH SESSION.
HOW DOES THAT SOUND FOR A PLAN? SOUNDS GREAT.
SOUNDS LIKE AN EXCELLENT PLAN.
SO WHAT I THOUGHT WE COULD DO IS, UH, UH, I CAN ACTUALLY, YOU KNOW, I CAN SHOW IT ON THE SCREEN IF YOU WANT, OR WE CAN JUST KIND OF GO THROUGH SECTION BY SECTION JUST, UH, TO LIKE TALK THROUGH, YOU KNOW, ARE THERE ANY THINGS THAT YOU FEEL WE NEED TO CHANGE OR ELABORATE ON? UH MM-HMM.
AND I CAN KIND OF TALK YOU THROUGH, YOU KNOW, SECTION BY SECTION AND WE CAN PAUSE FOR ON EACH SECTION AND, UH, SEE IF YOU WANT TO DO ANYTHING.
ACTUALLY, I THINK I CAN SHARE.
SO, YOU KNOW, WE BASICALLY HAVE THE TABLE OF CONTENTS PAGE.
UH, AND BASICALLY THE EXECUTIVE SUMMARY IS JUST A VERY QUICK SAYING, THIS IS WHAT STRATEGIC PLAN IS, AND WE'RE GONNA HAVE, YOU KNOW, FIVE OR FOUR, YOU KNOW, BASIC FOUNDATIONAL CONCEPTS AND FIVE KEY PRIORITY AREAS.
SO, YOU KNOW, JUST A VERY, VERY BRIEF SUMMARY,
[00:10:02]
UH, THAT SOMEONE, THEY CAN READ IT IN 30 SECONDS AND KIND OF GET THE GIST.AND THEN, UH, JACQUELINE SUGGESTED GETTING A LITTLE BIT ABOUT THE COMMISSION BACKGROUND AND HISTORY.
SO WHAT I DID IS, YOU KNOW, LISTED KIND OF THE ORDINANCE THAT WAS, THAT WAS PASSED, THAT ESTABLISHED THE SEVEN MEMBER COMMISSION, UH, WHAT THEY SAID THAT YOUR ACTUAL, UH, DUTIES WERE AND SOME ACCOMPLISHMENTS OF THE FIRST FOUR YEARS.
UH, AND THEN TALKING ABOUT THE DIRECTION THAT, UH, YOU KNOW, THAT WE'RE REALLY NOW KIND OF EXPANDING THE DISCUSSION TO BE DIVERSITY, EQUITY, AND INCLUSION AND LONGING.
AND KIND OF THE KEY LESSONS IS THAT THE IMPORTANCE OF BUILDING A STRATEGIC PLAN AND NOT JUST DOING THINGS WITHOUT A PLAN.
UH, SO AGAIN, THAT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF RAISES THE DISCUSSION OF THE IMPORTANCE OF A STRATEGIC PLAN AND THEN RECOGNIZING, UH, THE PEOPLE THAT HAVE CURRENTLY BEEN WORKING ON THIS PROPOSED PLAN.
I WAS GONNA ASK, UM, TARA, IF YOU HAD TO, ANYTHING TO ADD REGARDING ACCOMPLISHMENT, BECAUSE YOU'VE BEEN THE MOST CONTINUOUS MEMBER? UH, I ACTUALLY DO.
UM, AND CHRISTIE MAY BE ABLE TO HELP ME WITH THE NAME OF IT.
UM, I THINK WE CAME UP WITH, FOR THE BUSINESSES, UM, IT WAS BRIAN THAT CAME UP WITH IT.
DID IT? I DON'T REMEMBER WHAT THAT ACTUALLY, I DON'T HAVE, I KNOW, HAVE RECORD EITHER.
I THINK HE DID SOMETHING ON HIS OWN.
UM, BUT I'LL HAVE TO GO BACK AND LOOK AT RECORDS TO SEE.
UM, OTHER THAN THAT, NO, EVERYTHING LOOKS GREAT.
UH, IF, IF YOU FIND THAT, YOU KNOW, ONE, IF YOU WANT ME TO ADD LIKE A, UH, ONE BULLET ABOUT THAT, IF YOU FIND IT, IT'S SOMETHING THAT CAN
JUST, UH, A COUPLE OF THINGS UNDER THE SUMMARY.
UM, TARA IS ACTUALLY VICE CHAIR, SO THAT SHOULD BE AT IT.
AND YOU HAVE CITY COUNCIL LIAISON, DAN THOMPSON.
T-H-O-R-T-O-N OR YOU HAVE AN EXTRA N IN THERE? YES.
I, YEAH, THAT'S THEN, UH, YEAH,
IT'S EASIER FOR ME TO TAKE NOTES INSTEAD OF TRYING TO TYPE RIGHT INTO THIS, SO I'M LIKE, YEAH.
I HAVE A QUESTION JUST AS WE ARE, UH, YOU KNOW, LEARNING A LOT ABOUT THIS OURSELVES AND THEN ALSO, UH, TRYING TO EDUCATE, UM, THE, YOU KNOW, THE CITY COUNCIL AS WELL AS OTHER COMMUNITY MEMBERS.
WHAT IS THE, UH, WHAT IS A GOOD RESPONSE TO THE QUESTION? WELL, YOUR COMMISSION IS CALLED, UH, DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION, BUT YOUR PLAN IS CALLED DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, AND BELONGING.
WHY IS THAT A DIFFERENT NAME? UH, WE, I, YOU KNOW, I'M, I CERTAINLY UNDERSTAND WHY IT'S CALLED THAT, BUT WILL MIGHT BE PEOPLE WHO ASK WHY IT'S CALLED EIB INSTEAD OF DNI, WHICH WHAT IS, WHICH IS WHAT THE COMMISSION IS CALLED.
UH, AND ACTUALLY ONE OF THE RECOMMENDATIONS IS TO RENAME THE COMMISSION.
UH, AND THEN WHAT HAPPENS IF YOU LOOK AT YOUR STRATEGIC PLAN, YOU KNOW, UH, YOU, YOU KNOW, YOU TALK ABOUT BUILDING ENVIRONMENT WHERE EVERY FEELS LIKE EVERYBODY FEELS LIKE THEY BELONG.
YOU KNOW, SO THE WORD BELONGING IS THERE.
AND THAT, UH, AND THAT IN YOUR, UH, AND THEN IN YOUR WEBSITE, YOU ACTUALLY SAY THAT THE CITY OF HUDU, YOU KNOW, ACKNOWLEDGE THE HISTORY OF DISCRIMINATION, ET CETERA, ET CETERA.
AND THE, AND THE CITY ACKNOWLEDGES THAT EQUALITY OCCURS WHEN DIFFERENCES SUCH AS RACE.
SO YOU TALK ABOUT EQUALITY AND EQUITY, YOU KNOW, IN YOUR, UH, IN YOUR STATEMENT ONLINE.
SO IT BASICALLY IS, YOU KNOW, KIND OF REFLECTING THE WORDS AND THE LANGUAGE THAT YOU'RE ALREADY USING THERE AT, FOR THAT PROCESS OF THE NAME CHANGE.
WE GO BEFORE CITY COUNCIL TO DO THAT, RIGHT? YES.
SO THAT BE SOMETHING, THAT'S GONNA BE SOMETHING WE MAY WANNA DO.
[00:15:01]
YEAH.WE'RE PRESENTING THIS, RIGHT? YES.
WOULD THAT BE NO, I, I THINK, WELL, OH, NO, YOU SAID TO, SO WE'RE GONNA PRESENT THIS ON THE 18TH, RIGHT? SO THESE ARE THE SUGGESTIONS, AND THEY NEED TO THINK ABOUT IT.
THEY NEED TO TALK ABOUT IT, AND THAT THEN WE GO AND PRE, UM, NEXT TIME PRESENT, YOU KNOW, DO THEY ADOPT THIS OR NOT? RIGHT.
SO WE CAN ADD THAT IT'S UP TO Y'ALL.
WE CAN ADD IT TO THAT, THAT CITY COUNCIL MEETING THAT SAME NIGHT, SAME NIGHT.
AND BECAUSE THE WORK SESSION IS DESIGNED TO ALLOW Y'ALL TO DIRECTLY ENGAGE WITH THE CITY COUNCIL TO HAVE MORE OF A DISCUSSION.
AND THEN WHEN THEY OFFICIALLY GO TO THE D, UM, IF, IF Y'ALL WANT TO GO AHEAD AND HAVE THAT ALREADY PRELOADED ON THE AGENDA, WE CAN TAKE CARE OF THAT SO THAT THEY CAN THEN, RIGHT THEN AND THERE VOTE YAY OR NAY.
OR THEY MAY TABLE IT IF THEY WANT, BUT WE CAN ADD IT TO THE JULY 18TH IF, IF THAT'S WHAT Y'ALL, I THINK THAT'S A, YEAH.
WE HAVE TO BE PREPARED TO, TO EXPLAIN, EXPLAIN WHY, ANSWER, WHAT, WHAT, AND WHY.
SO I, I DO WANNA SAY THAT IF THAT IS AN ACTUAL OFFICIAL ACTION ITEM, THAT'S SOMETHING THAT Y'ALL NEED THE VOTE ON, VOTE ON.
ONCE WE GET, AND Y'ALL CAN DO THAT NOW, OR ONCE YOU GET TO THE END, UM, OF THIS ITEM, WE CAN TAKE CARE OF ALL THOSE THINGS.
YEAH, I THINK THAT'S THE, THAT'S PROBABLY LIKE, LIKE I CALL THE LOWEST HANGING FRUIT AND THE FIRST ACTION THAT YOU CAN TAKE, BECAUSE I KIND OF
IT SETS UP THE DISCUSSION, YOU KNOW, UH, THEN WE TALK ABOUT, YOU KNOW, THE, THE FOUNDATIONAL, UH, CONCEPTS AND PRINCIPLES AND, YOU KNOW, PRINCIPLE ONE IS THAT A STRATEGIC PLAN IS A LIVING ON, UH, ONGOING DOCUMENT THAT WILL CONTINUE TO EVOLVE AND CHANGE OVER TIME, YOU KNOW, MAKING THAT POINT.
THE SECOND THING IS THAT A-D-E-I-D-E-I-B STRATEGIC PLAN SHOULD SUPPORT HU'S OVERALL CITY, THE STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND SO WHAT I DID IS I WENT THROUGH AND BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, WENT THROUGH THE FOUR PILLARS OF THE CURRENT STRATEGIC PLAN, AND KIND OF SUMMARIZED HOW DEIB CONNECTS TO EACH OF THESE FOUR SO THAT, YOU KNOW, OPERATIONAL EXCELLENCE AND EFFICIENCY, THAT, YOU KNOW, THAT HAVING THE BE OPERATIONALIZING THE BEST OF DEI PRINCIPLES, BOTH INTERNALLY AND EXTERNALLY, YOU KNOW, WILL LEAD TO, YOU KNOW, BETTER EXCELLENCE AND EFFICIENCY THAT, YOU KNOW, MAINTAINING FISCAL STABILITY, YOU KNOW, INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY THE BEST POSSIBLE WAY TO EFFICIENTLY UTILIZE RESOURCES AND TO AVOID MISSTEPS THAT COULD JEOPARDIZE THOSE FINANCIAL WELLBEING.
SO, KIND OF THE DEFENSIVE PART, YOU KNOW, GROWING, SUSTAIN, UH, RESPONSIVENESS SUSTAINABLY THAT, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT, YOU KNOW, A FAST GROWING CITY NEEDING, YOU KNOW, STRONG, DIVERSE, UH, UH, WORKFORCE.
AND ALSO WANTING TO, UH, INCENT, YOU KNOW, DIVERSE BUSINESSES AND EDUCATIONAL GROUPS TO COME AND INVEST IN HATO.
AND THEN FINALLY, YOU KNOW, CREATING THE HIGHEST QUALITY OF LIFE.
YOU KNOW, RIGHT THERE, THE WORDS ARE VERY STRONG, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF AN ENGAGED, TOLERANT, AND COMPASSIONATE COMMUNITY WHERE EVERYBODY CAN BELONG AND HAVE THEIR VOICES HEARD.
SO THAT ONE, THAT'S KIND OF THE STRONGEST ONE, FOUR, BUT IT'S THAT ONE IS DIRECTLY SAYING THAT, YOU KNOW, WE WANT TO VALUE ALL OF OUR DIVERSE RESIDENTS.
ANY, UH, QUESTIONS OR THOUGHTS ON, UH, PRINCIPLE NUMBER TWO? THEN NUMBER THREE, IT'S ALSO VERY IMPORTANT TO UPFRONT DEFINE, YOU KNOW, WHAT IS MEANT BY DIVERSITY, INCLUSION, EQUITY, AND BELONGING.
UH, SO, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, JUST SOME BRIEF DEFINITIONS OF EACH OF THESE FOUR, UH, SO THAT, YOU KNOW, SO WE, WE HAVE VOCABULARY AND UNDERSTAND, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT WE'RE TALKING ABOUT WHEN WE SAY THESE FOUR WORDS, THAT DIVERSITY IS SIMPLY THE FACT EVERY SINGLE PERSON IS, IS UNIQUE.
AND THEN INCLUSION MEANS YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT YOU'RE BRINGING EVERYBODY TOGETHER, EVERYBODY'S INCLUDED.
EQUITY IS RECOGNIZING THAT THE SOCIAL IDENTIFIERS DO AFFECT EQUALITY, THAT DIFFERENT PEOPLE HAVE HAD DIFFERENT ACCESS OR LACK OF ACCESS, AND WE NEED TO ACKNOWLEDGE THAT.
AND THE BELONGING IS EVERYONE HERE IS TRULY HEARD
[00:20:01]
AND FULLY VALUED.THEN THE FOURTH ONE IS, WE NEEDED TO FIND WHAT IS THE SCOPE OF OUR STRATEGIC PLAN? BECAUSE SOME CITIES DECIDE ONLY TO FOCUS ON THE INTERNAL CITY STAFF, AND IT'S, IT'S ISOLATED TO THAT.
AND SOME CITIES TAKE THE APPROACH THAT THIS IS ONLY ABOUT THE COMMUNITY AND COMMUNITY ACTIVITIES, UH, BUT MOST HOLISTIC APPROACH IS BETWEEN, BECAUSE YOU CANNOT DISCONNECT CITY EMPLOYEES AND HOW THE CITY IS RUN FROM THE COMMUNITY ITSELF, AND THE CITIZENS THAT WE RECOMMEND HAVING A HOLISTIC D-E-I-B-B STRATEGY THAT INCORPORATES BOTH THE ENTIRE COMMUNITY AND THE INTERNAL LEADERSHIP AND EMPLOYEE POPULATION.
AND THEN THIS KEY SUMMARY STATEMENT, WHICH WE LIFTED FROM THE MASSACHUSETTS MUNICIPAL DEI COALITION, BASICALLY SAYING THAT DEIB IS A, IS NOT A SINGLE POLICY OR AN ACTION, BUT IT'S A, IT'S A MINDSET THAT HAS TO BE PRACTICED OVER AND OVER AGAIN IN EVERY DEPARTMENT FOREVER.
ANY QUESTIONS ON THAT PART? NOPE.
I THINK'S GREAT
AND SO PRIORITY ONE IS HAVING AN ONGOING SUSTAINABLE STRUCTURE TO CONTINUE THIS WORK.
UH, YOU KNOW, THAT'S, YOU KNOW, BUILDING A STRUCTURE AND A FOUNDATION.
ACTUALLY, I CAN ALMOST, I CAN ALMOST DO A, I COULD CREATE LIKE A, UH, A, UH, A GRAPHIC OR ONE OF THE POWERPOINT CHARTS KINDA HAS LIKE A, A BASEMENT IN DIFFERENT ROOMS AND THE BASEMENT CAN BE HAVING A, AN ONGOING SUSTAINABLE STRUCTURE.
SO I'LL FIGURE OUT A WAY OF PUTTING ALL THESE INTO LIKE, SOME KIND OF GRAPHIC.
BUT, YOU KNOW, PRIORITY ONE IS, YOU KNOW, YOU KNOW, WE FILL THE OPEN POSITIONS, UH, RECOMMEND NAMING, RENAMING THE DEI COMMISSION TO, TO BE THE DEIB COMMISSION TO RECOGNIZE THE IMPORTANCE OF EQUITY AND BELONGING IN THIS WORK.
THAT IT'S NOT JUST ABOUT DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION, BUT IT INCLUDES EQUITY AND BELONGING.
AND THEN LOOKING AT GETTING MORE PEOPLE INVOLVED IN THIS WORK.
UH, YOU KNOW, MAYBE, UH, FOCUSING ON HAVING A TASK FORCE OR A WORKING GROUP TO TAKE THIS INITIAL PLAN TO THE NEXT LEVEL AND START MAKING IT SOMETHING THAT'S IMPLEMENTABLE.
UH, AND YOU CAN LOOK AT, YOU KNOW, INCLUDING KEY LEADERS FROM THE CITY STAFF BECAUSE THEY NEED TO INVOLVE IN, YOU KNOW, IN THIS WORK, UH, MAYBE LOOKING AT MEMBERS OF OUR COMMUNITY, UH, MAYBE, UH, SOMEONE FROM, UH, THE EDUCATIONAL SYSTEM AND INCLUDING THE YOUTH VOICE.
AND THIS CAN INCLUDE, YOU KNOW, EVEN SETTING UP SOME ADVISORY COUNCILS OR YOUTH, UH, UH, OR A DIFFERENT COMMUNITIES THAT CAN HELP, YOU KNOW, EDUCATE US AND GIVE US FEEDBACK, INPUT.
UH, AND SO AS WE EXTEND, EXPAND, WE CAN CONTINUE TO USE SURVEYS, UH, TO MEASURE, UH, YOU KNOW, AND USE YEAH.
USING SURVEYS, UH, TO MEASURE, UH, THE ONGOING FEELING OF, UH, INCLUSION AND BELONGING.
NOW, SOMEWHERE THERE, I THINK THAT YOU, THERE WAS, UH, YOU WENT THROUGH THE, THE LIST OF, UH, DIFFERENT STAKEHOLDER GROUPS AND, UH, I DIDN'T SEE, I DON'T, I DON'T REMEMBER WHERE IT WAS, BUT I THOUGHT MAYBE WE SHOULD ADD SENIORS TO IT.
UH, THIS MAY ALSO INCLUDE FORMING SOME ADVISORY COUNSELORS OR GROUPS SUCH AS YOUTH, COMMUNITY, FAITH COMMUNITIES, OR OTHER STAKEHOLDERS, I GUESS OTHER STAKEHOLDERS.
UH, WE MIGHT WANNA MENTION SENIORS.
WHAT I SHOULD DO IS, I, I'M THINKING OF TAKING THE YOUTH VOICE.
SO THAT'S, I'LL, I'LL, I'LL LAY, I'LL DO THAT THERE.
THAT'S 'CAUSE IT, IT BASICALLY, YEAH, IT'S KIND OF, IT MAKES UP MORE, A LITTLE BIT MORE BROAD.
CAN I ASK A QUESTION UNDER PRIORITY AREA NUMBER ONE AS WELL? UM,
[00:25:01]
WOULD, WOULD WE WANT TO PUT IN THERE SOMETHING LIKE A, AN INTERNAL YEARLY, UH, REVIEW OR ASSESSMENT OF, YOU KNOW, THE, THE COMMISSION COULD GO AND, AND LOOK BACK AT THE YEAR AND, UM, UH, YOU KNOW, WHAT, WHAT HAS BEEN ACCOMPLISHED? UH, WHERE ARE WE, YOU KNOW, THAT MIGHT HELP US TO ESTABLISH, UH, FUTURE BENCHMARKS, UH, FOR THE NEXT YEAR, UM, AS WE GO THROUGH.BENCHMARKS, METRICS, MEASUREMENT, RIGHT? METRICS MEASUREMENTS, YES.
I'M GONNA ADD, I'LL ADD THAT BELOW THE, UH, SEE SUR, YOU KNOW, USING SURVEYS, MEASURE AND ASCERTAIN THE OVERALL CITIZEN FEELING.
BUT I THINK WE ALSO NEED TO LOOK AT COMMISSION ITSELF.
UH, YOU KNOW, ESTABLISHING A PROCESS OF AN ANNUAL REVIEW THAT GOES BEFORE THE CITY COUNCIL OF
THE SECOND ONE THEN IS ASSURING FULL PUBLIC ENGAGEMENT IN THIS WORK.
UH, THAT, YOU KNOW, WE WANNA, YOU KNOW, WE WANT THE BROADEST AND MOST INCLUSIVE RANGE OF RESIDENTS TO BE ENGAGED.
AND SO, YOU KNOW, CONTINUE, WE ARE, YOU KNOW, CONTINUING TO USE, UH, CITIZEN RESIDENT SURVEYS.
AND I SHOWED, YOU KNOW, I KIND OF SHOWED SOME RESULTS FROM PAST SURVEYS THAT WERE FAIRLY POSITIVE, BUT YOU CAN ALWAYS ASK THE SAME QUESTIONS AND SEE IF THEY PROGRESS IN A POSITIVE WAY.
UH, AND ALSO I'M GONNA, I RECOMMEND, YOU KNOW, SLICING AND DICING THE DATA THAT YOU KNOW, YOU, YOU KNOW, LIKE FOR EXAMPLE, DO YOU KNOW PEOPLE OF COLOR OR DIFFERENT GENDERS, UH, YOU KNOW, HAVE SIGNIFICANTLY DIFFERENT ANSWERS TO THESE QUESTIONS? BECAUSE THEN THAT CAN HIGHLIGHT SOMETHING THAT, THAT THE, UH, THE PLAN NEEDS TO WORK ON.
UH, THAT IT'S IMPORTANT TO, YOU KNOW, COMMUNICATE, YOU KNOW, THE CITY COUNCIL TO COMMUNICATE KEY FINDINGS WHEN YOU DO SURVEYS AND ACTION PLANS, THAT THE WORST THING, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF TIMES WHEN I WORK WITH ALMOST ANY CLIENT, THE WORST THING THEY CAN DO IS DO LIKE AN EMPLOYEE AND GET EMPLOYEE ENGAGEMENT SURVEY OR A CITIZEN ENGAGEMENT SURVEY, THEN NEVER COMMUNICATE THE RESULTS.
AND WHAT THEY'RE GONNA DO WITH, WITH, ABOUT IT.
WHEN PEOPLE TAKE SURVEYS, THEY WANNA KNOW THAT YOU'RE DOING SOMETHING WITH IT.
AND THEN, YOU KNOW, HOLDING FOCUS GROUP SESSIONS WITH VARIOUS GROUPS OF DEMOGRAPHIC RESIDENTS HOLDING LISTENING POST SESSIONS WHERE, YOU KNOW, YOU DON'T EVEN REACT.
YOU JUST LISTEN TO PEOPLE, GIVE THEM A VOICE JUST TO SHARE.
UH, AND MAYBE HAVING THESE ADVISORY COUNCILS, UH, CAN PROVIDE INPUT AND, UH, A DISCUSSION THAT BECAUSE FREQUENT COMMUNICATION WITH DEIB WORK AND THESE MESSAGES IS CRITICAL TO THIS BEING SUC, UH, SUCCESS, UH, THAT THE COMMUNICATIONS DIRECTOR REALLY DOES NEED TO BE A KEY PARTNER, UH, WITH THE DEIB COMMISSION AND THIS ONGOING WORK.
ONE, UM, QUESTION THAT I HAVE FOR, UH, FOR CHRISTIE, MM-HMM.
SO WE DO HAVE A COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER WHO IS, UM, OFFICIALLY STARTED, I THINK THIS PAST WEEK.
UM, SHE JUNG, SO I CAN, I JUST PUT, UH, I CAN ALWAYS PUT COMMUNICATION, UH, THE CITY COMMUNICATIONS LEADER, LEAVE IT, UH, GENERIC.
BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, SOMEDAY THEY PROMOTED TO DIRECTOR.
SO I'LL JUST PUT CITY COMMUNICATIONS, UH, LEADER.
THEN THIS IS PRIORITY AREA THREE, WHICH IS WORKING WITH, UH, MAKING SURE THAT DEIB ENGAGEMENT IN ALL INTERNAL CITY PRACTICES, WHICH FOCUSES ON THE INTERNAL PRACTICES WITHIN THE CITY, EMPLOYEE, STAFF, UH, AND PROGRAMS. UH, SO THIS, YOU KNOW, THIS IS GONNA BE KEY IN TERMS OF REALLY, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT THE, YOU KNOW, INTERNAL PRACTICES IN TERMS OF RECRUITING THEIR BEST TALENT, RETAINING AND GROWING DIVERSE TALENT, WELCOMING DIVERSITY OF THOUGHT AND I OF IDEAS, YOU KNOW, LEVERAGING YOUR DIVERSE EMPLOYEES TO BETTER SERVE THE VARIOUS DIVERSE ASPECTS OF THE COMMUNITY.
AND, UH, AND ALSO, UH, LEVERAGING THE DIVERSE EMPLOYEES TO BETTER SERVE THE POPULATION.
[00:30:01]
AND THIS IS SORT OF LIKE RECENT, YOU KNOW, THE, THE GENERIC BUSINESS CASE FOR DIVERSITY.THAT MEANS REALLY ENGAGING CITY STAFF STRONGLY IN THIS WORK, UH, AND ENGAGING EVERY SINGLE, YOU KNOW, EVERY SINGLE DEPARTMENT, EVERY SINGLE LEADER REPORTING TO THE CITY MANAGER SHOULD BE ASKING THEMSELVES, HOW DOES DEIB IMPACT MY OWN FUNCTION WORK, SUCH AS PARKS AND RECREATION, POLICE, PUBLIC WORKS, ECONOMICS DEVELOPMENT.
AND ACTUALLY, YOU HAD A GREAT EXAMPLE TODAY WHERE YOUR PARKS AND RECREATION, UH, DIRECTOR, YOU KNOW, UH, KIND OF WAS LOOKING AT THINGS THROUGH A DIVERSITY LENS AND BROUGHT THAT FORWARD.
SO THAT WAS AN EXCELLENT, UH, EXAMPLE OF WHAT SHOULD BE HAPPENING.
SO, UH, ANY REACTIONS TO NUMBER THREE? THEN? NUMBER FOUR IS, UH, PROVIDING A DIB FOCUS ON ECONOMIC GROWTH AND EMPOWERMENT.
YOU KNOW, RECOGNIZING YOU'RE ONE OF THE FASTEST GROWING CITIES IN TEXAS, YOU KNOW, ARE WE, YOU KNOW, MAKING THE WHOLE, YOU KNOW, ARE WE THE AREA WELCOMING, INCLUSIVE, SO WE'RE GONNA BE ATTRACTING, YOU KNOW, KEY PEOPLE AND BUSINESSES THAT WANNA MOVE HERE.
YOU KNOW, ARE WE BUILDING A WELL-EDUCATED, SKILLED, DIVERSE WORKFORCE? DO WE OFFER EXCELLENT, DIVERSE FORMS OF CULTURE AND RECREATION, YOU KNOW, THAT ARE GONNA ATTRACT FAMILIES THAT WANNA, UH, UH, YOU KNOW, LIVE, LIVE HERE? AND PROVIDING JUST A GENERAL WELCOMING CULTURE FOR ALL BUSINESSES AND ORGANIZATIONS AND REALLY ENGAGING, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, THE, THE, YOU KNOW, ECONOMIC ARM, UH, OF THE CITY IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, WORKING ON D-E-B-D-E-I-B INITIATIVE AND PLAN, AND ALSO MAYBE INCLUDING, YOU KNOW, THE HU CHAMBER OF COMMERCE AS WELL AS SOLICITING INPUT FROM BUSINESSES WITHIN, IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, HOW DOES, HOW DOES D HOW WILL DEIB VALUE, UH, TO THE ECONOMIC SIDE OF HUDU? I'LL PAUSE HERE FOR A SECOND.
I JUST WANTED TO ASK CHENEY, IF, IF YOU, YOU GUYS HAVE IN, IN YOUR AREA HAVE ALL, I'M SURE YOU'VE THOUGHT ABOUT A LOT OF THESE THINGS AND MAYBE THERE'S SOMETHING THAT IS NOT THERE THAT MIGHT BE YEAH.
JUST SPECIFIC TO AREA FIVE OR JUST KIND YEAH.
SPECIFIC TO, UH, TO FIVE, RIGHT? OR FOUR? WELL, I'M THINKING ABOUT, UH, ECONOMIC GROWTH AND EMPOWERMENT.
I STARTED READING THE IMPLEMENTATION PLAN
SO I THINK THERE'S SOME OPPORTUNITIES SPECIFIC TO ECONOMIC DEVELOPMENT, UM, THAT ARE GEARED TOWARDS MARGINALIZED POPULATIONS.
SO WHAT TYPICALLY HAPPENS IS THAT, UM, MINORITIES AND MARGINALIZED POPULATIONS ARE KIND OF STACKED AGAINST FROM THE BEGINNING BECAUSE FINANCING IS MORE OF A CHALLENGE BECAUSE THEY DON'T GET APPROVED.
UM, FINDING GOOD REAL ESTATE REPRESENTATION, I MEAN, THERE'S STATS OUT THERE THAT SHOW YOU HOW MUCH MORE IN INTEREST, UM, MINORITIES PAY, HOW MUCH MORE IN RENT THEY PAY, HOW MUCH MORE IN INSURANCE THEY PAY FOR THEIR BUSINESSES.
UM, SO VERY SIMILAR TO THE REDLINING THAT WAS DONE, UM, IN, IN PREVIOUS DECADES.
WE'RE STILL SEEING THE IMPACTS OF THAT, ESPECIALLY IN CERTAIN AREAS OF THE COUNTRY.
SO THERE'S SPECIFIC FUNDING OPPORTUNITIES, AND THERE ARE SPECIFIC FUNDING INSTITUTIONS THAT ARE CERTIFIED IN, UH, MINORITY OWNED BUSINESS OPERATIONS AND THINGS LIKE THAT.
SO PROMOTING THOSE TYPE OF, UM, BUSINESSES AND, AND I GUESS RESOURCES, UM, WOULD BE AN OPPORTUNITY THAT ECONOMICS DEVELOPMENT SPECIFICALLY COULD ALSO UPLIFT ON OUR END.
SO, LOT, LOT THERE SOME SPECIFIC ACTION STEPS THAT, THAT COULD BE TAKEN, RIGHT? MM-HMM.
'CAUSE WE, I ACTUALLY WROTE, YOU KNOW, IN, IN THE DOCUMENT HERE, YOU KNOW, I KIND JUST USE SOME EXAMPLES IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, AND THIS COULD INCLUDE LIKE GRANTS TO ASSIST UNDERSERVED COMMUNITIES AND ESTABLISHING GROWING BUSINESSES, MAKING SURE THAT YOUR SUPPLIER DIVERSITY PROGRAM IN TERMS OF THE CITY SPEND, YOU KNOW, IS DONE.
YOU KNOW, WITH, WITH, WITH, YOU KNOW, WITH DIVERSE, UH, VENDORS THAT IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, A LOT OF ORGANIZATIONS DO HAVE SUPPLIER DIVERSITY PROGRAMS TO ASSURE THAT DIVERSE BUSINESSES ARE BE BEING TREATED EQUITABLY WITH CITY CONTRACTS.
THAT'S AN AREA TOO, UM, FOR DEVELOPMENT.
[00:35:01]
NOT NECESSARILY SPECIFIC ECONOMIC, BUT WE DO HAVE A HUB PROGRAM THAT'S THE HISTORICALLY UNDERUTILIZED BUSINESSES.BUT THIS COMMISSION MAY WANNA REVIEW THAT.
LIKE, HOW WELL ARE WE DOING WITH THAT? HOW OFTEN ARE WE ACTUALLY AWARDING THOSE CONTRACTS, NOT JUST YEAH.
SO THAT MIGHT BE AN AREA TO MM-HMM.
UH, HOW MANY, UH, ARE YOU FEELING? LIKE HOW MANY EMPLOYEES? HU CHAMBER OF COMMERCE HAS THREE EMPLOYEE? YEAH, I THINK THEY HAVE THREE AND A HALF
SEE, UM, YOU KNOW, IN RALEIGH WE HAVE THE RALEIGH, YOU KNOW, RALEIGH'S A BIG CITY.
I LIVE IN A CITY OF 500,000, YOU KNOW, AND OUR CHAMBER OF COMMERCE ACTUALLY HAS A-D-E-I-B DIRECTOR WHO HAS TWO STAFF PEOPLE, YOU KNOW, EVEN THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE WITH THE THREE, YOU KNOW, THREE AND A HALF PEOPLE MAY BE, YOU KNOW, A QUARTER OF A PERSON, YOU KNOW, CAN BE HAVING FOCUS ON, YOU KNOW, DEIB IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, BUSINESS PRACTICES AND FOSTERING, YOU KNOW, ECONOMIC GROWTH, DIVERSE BUSINESSES.
BUT THAT CAN BE PART OF OUR PLAN.
AND THAT'S WHY I THINK IT'S IMPORTANT, YOU KNOW, TO ENGAGE, YOU KNOW, MAYBE THE LEADER FROM THE CHAMBER OF COMMERCE, YOU KNOW, IN THIS WORK AS PART OF THE EXTENDED TEAM.
AND THEN THE FIFTH ONE IS JUST THESE COMMUNITY EVENTS.
AND AGAIN, WE KNOW, WE TALKED ABOUT, WE JUST TALKED ABOUT THE HOLIDAY, UH, FESTIVITIES AND HOW WE WOULD WANNA MAKE THEM INCLUDE, UH, YOU KNOW, UH, INCLUDE IT'S THAT EVERYBODY FEELS LIKE THEY BELONG.
THAT IT'S NOT JUST ALL, YOU KNOW, CHRISTIAN CHRISTMAS ORIENTED, BUT THAT, YOU KNOW, PEOPLE FROM DIFFERENT CULTURES FEEL LIKE THEY BELONG.
UH, SO, YOU KNOW, YOU HAVE, YOU KNOW, YOU ALREADY HAVE THIS COMMUNITY SPIRIT IN YOUR HIPPO PRIDE, AND NOW, YOU KNOW, HOW DO WE ASSURE THAT ALL FIRST PARTS OF THE CITIZENS ARE INCLUDED IN A POSITIVE WAY? YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT, JUST LIKE YOU DID WITH THE HOLIDAY, YOU KNOW, LOOKING AT HIPPO DAY AND HOW CAN WE LEVERAGE THAT TO BUILD COMMUNITY PRIDE AND FOCUS ON, UH, DEIB.
UH, AND SO, YOU KNOW, JUST IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, MAKING THIS A PRIORITY, ALWAYS LOOKING AT EVERYTHING THAT THE CITY IS DOING IN TERMS OF BUILD COMMUNITY BUILDING THAT IS DONE THROUGH A DIVERSITY LENS AND IT'S WELCOMING FOR ALL PEOPLE.
HIPPO DAY, THE HOLIDAY HOLIDAY AND HU IS THE KIND OF ALL ENCOMPASSING OF ALL THE HOLIDAYS AND HU HOLIDAYS AND HU MM-HMM.
HOLIDAYS AND HU UH, MONTHLY PRO AND I, AND I'LL PUT MONTHLY, MONTHLY PROCLAMATIONS.DO, IT'S LIKE, YOU WANNA MAKE SURE THAT, YOU KNOW, THOSE MONTHLY PROCLAMATIONS THAT YOU DO, YOU KNOW, ARE ALSO, YOU KNOW, LIKE, JUST LIKE YOU DID, UH, YOU KNOW, BOTH JUNETEENTH AND PRIDE MONTH, YOU KNOW, ARE GOOD EXAMPLES OF, YOU KNOW, INCLUSIVE PROCLAMATIONS ALL LIKE, YOU KNOW, I'LL ADD THE THOSE, UH, TO, YOU KNOW, HERE, I'LL EXPAND THIS A LITTLE BIT.
UH, AND FIRST ONE I THINK IS EASY.
THE SECOND ONE IS GOING TO NEED A LITTLE BIT MORE DISCUSSION.
WE MIGHT WANNA HOLD OFF A LITTLE BIT, BUT I THINK THE FIRST ONE IS ASKING THE CITY COUNCIL TO VOTE ON RENAMING THE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION COMMISSION TO BE THE DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION, EQUITY AND BELONGING, OR DEIB COMMISSION.
UH, AND THEN ONE THING CONCERN, I CAN LET YOU KNOW, JACK, TALK ABOUT THIS A LITTLE BIT 'CAUSE SHE BROUGHT ME, IS THAT RIGHT NOW ON THE MAIN COUNCIL PAGE, FRONT AND CENTER, UH, YOU KNOW, RIGHT THERE ON THE MAIN PAGE WHERE THE FIRST PAGE THAT EVERYBODY GOES TO AND THEY WANNA SEE ABOUT THE CITY COUNCIL, UH, VERY HIGHLY VISIBLE IS THE INFORMATION ABOUT THE PREVIOUS LAWSUITS.
AND WE MIGHT MAYBE REALLY WANNA QUESTION IF THAT'S THE APPROPRIATE PLACE TO PUT THEM.
I, I, I, WHEN I SAW THAT, I WAS, I REMEMBER QUESTIONING WHY IS THAT HERE? OKAY.
I, BECAUSE NOT TO SAY THAT IT NEEDS TO BE HIDDEN, IT JUST DOESN'T SEEM LIKE THAT'S THE MAIN PAGE IS THE PLACE FOR THAT.
SO, AND HOW I, I'M LOOKING AT THIS FROM A BACKGROUND THAT I HAD IN HUMAN RESOURCES AND DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION.
I WORK WITH PROFIT, I WORK WITH GOVERNMENT, AND I ACTUALLY INVESTIGATED,
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YOU KNOW, LAWSUITS, THREATS OF LAWSUITS, CRIMINAL LAWSUITS, CIVIL LAWSUITS.AND IT IS NOT, THERE'S NO REQUIREMENT THAT THAT BE ON A WEBSITE.
AND WHEN I SAW IT, I WAS, I WAS, FIRST OF ALL, I WAS TAKEN ABACK AND I WAS JUST WONDERING WHY.
AND IT CAUSED TO ME, IT CAUSES, UM, DIVISIVENESS AND, UM, HURT FEELINGS AND, YOU KNOW, UM, IT HIGHLIGHTS MISTAKES VERSUS WHAT YOU'RE TRYING TO DO TO MOVE FORWARD.
SO I FEEL THAT IT SHOULD NOT BE THERE.
AND I, I DON'T, I DON'T KNOW THE BACKGROUND OF WHY IT IS THERE, BUT IT WAS JARRING TO ME TO SEE THAT.
SO I THINK IT SHOULD BE SOMEWHERE YEAH.
BUT YES, THE VISIBILITY WHERE YOU'RE TALKING ABOUT YEAH, LAW AND LAW, LAW ONGOING, THERE IS LEGAL ONE PAGE ACTIONS, YOU KNOW, WHATEVER, EVERYTHING IS THERE.
SO, 'CAUSE LIKE YOU, A LOT OF PEOPLE HAVE A NEGATIVE REACTION.
AND THEN ALSO ANOTHER, JUST ANOTHER POINT.
UM, SOME OF THE MOST OUTSTANDING COMPANIES IN DIVERSITY, EQUITY, INCLUSION, I WILL GUARANTEE YOU THEY HAVE LAWSUITS.
THEY HAVE LAWSUITS AND THEY DON'T PUT IT, OH, WE
AND THEN A PERSON CAN LOOK IN THERE.
OH, IT JUST CAUSES A LOT OF DISRUPTION.
'CAUSE YOU KNOW, ONE OF THE REASONS WHY SOMEONE MIGHT WANNA PUT IT THERE IS A KIND OF FOR ACCOUNTABILITY THAT WE WANNA HOLD PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE, BUT THAT SHOULD BE A PART OF THE OVERALL DEIB STRATEGIC PLAN.
YOU KNOW, THE PART OF THE STRATEGIC PLAN IS HAVING METRICS AND MEASUREMENTS AND HOLDING PEOPLE ACCOUNTABLE TO, YOU KNOW, DOING THE RIGHT THINGS AND ACHIEVING OUR GOALS.
AND THAT'S, YOU KNOW, AND KIND OF PUTTING IN A POSITIVE PLAN, UH, TO ADDRESS PREVIOUS WRONGS IS A BETTER WAY OF GOING ABOUT IT THAN JUST OUT THERE KIND OF GLARING SPOTLIGHT.
HOW SOON DO YOU WANNA BRING THIS UP TO THE CITY COUNCIL? SHOULD WE MAKE IT ONE OF THE TWO IMMEDIATE? SHOULD I KEEP IT AS AN IMMEDIATE, YOU KNOW, QUICK SUGGESTION? I THINK SO.
I DON'T KNOW WHY WE WOULD NOT, YOU KNOW, SO IF I CAN MAKE A COMMENT ON THE SECOND BULLET, UM, AS FAR AS, UM, AS FAR AS MOVING INFORMATION THAT'S NOT A CITY COUNCIL FUNCTION, SO I'M ACTUALLY SITTING IN AN EMAIL NOW AND JUST ASKING THE QUESTION.
MAYBE THERE'S, THERE IS A SPECIFIC REASON, LIKE A LEGAL REASON FOR IT TO BE THERE FROM OUR TEAM.
BUT THAT'S NOT A CITY COUNCIL DECISION TO MOVE INFORMATION AROUND ON THE, ON THE WEBSITE.
UH, DAN, I THOUGHT, UH, DAN, YOU MIGHT RECALL, OR THAT PERHAPS YES, CITY COUNCIL VOTED, BUT ACTUALLY THE CITY COUNCIL VOTED IT TO PUT THAT THERE.
I BELIEVE THAT IT, UH, ALL OF THOSE WERE VOTED BY COUNCIL TO PUT ON THAT WEBPAGE.
SO IT WAS, UM, I CAN'T TELL YOU EVERYBODY'S MOTIVES.
I THINK IF YOU ASKED EVERYBODY THEY WOULD SAY FOR TRANSPARENCY AND ACCOUNTABILITY.
UH, BUT, UH, YEAH, I MEAN, IT'S ONE THING TO PUT IT OUT THERE AND IT'S ANOTHER THING TO KEEP IT OUT THERE FOR A LONG TIME.
THERE IS, I THINK, DEFINITELY SOME VALIDITY TO SAY YOU PUT IT OUT THERE, IT'S BEEN OUT THERE, IT'S NOT LIKE IT'S HIDDEN ANYMORE.
DOES IT NEED TO STAY THERE? THAT, THAT, I THINK THAT'S A VALID QUESTION.
IT MIGHT BE, IT MIGHT BE VALID TO GO AND ACTUALLY LOOK AT THE, YOU KNOW, FIND THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING WHERE THAT WAS VOTED ON AND SEE THE EXACT WORDING OF HOW IT WAS WORDED TO SEE IF THE KIND OF, YOU KNOW, GIVES YOU A WAY TO JUST SAY, OKAY, HEY, IT'S BEEN OUT THERE FOR A WHILE, WE CAN MOVE IT.
OR IF IT WAS DONE IN SUCH A WAY WHERE IT, IT ALMOST IMPLIES THAT THEY HAVE TO LIKE REVOTE TO MOVE IT.
[00:45:05]
SO THAT CAN BE AN ACTION, YOU KNOW, THE ACTION THAT Y'ALL DO IN TERMS OF, YOU KNOW, GOING BACK AND RESEARCHING, YOU KNOW, HOW, HOW IT'S PORTRAYED IN THE MINUTES OF THE MEETING WHERE THAT WAS VOTED ON.AND THEN, YOU KNOW, THESE OTHER ACTIONS, YOU KNOW, MOST OF THEM ARE PRETTY HIGH LEVEL, YOU KNOW, BASICALLY, YOU KNOW, HAVE THE CITY COUNCIL, THE MAYOR AND THE CITY MANAGER STRONGLY AND PUBLICLY VOICE THEIR SUPPORT, UH, FOR ADDING DEIB STRATEGIC PLAN TO THE CITY WORK, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL TO REVIEW AND AFFIRM THE START TO THE DEI STRATEGIC PLAN, YOU KNOW, AND OF COURSE THEY CAN VOTE ON, YES, WE WANNA ADAPT THIS, YOU KNOW, INITIAL STRATEGIC PLAN.
AND THEY CAN ALSO, YOU KNOW, IN TERMS OF VOTING ON IT, THEY CAN SUGGEST CHANGES OR ADDITION, UH, THAT THE CITY COUNCIL SHOULD PROVIDE ONGOING BUDGETARY RESOURCES TO ASSURE THAT THIS CRITICAL WORK IS FUNDED.
UH, ALSO THE CITY MANAGER, I WOULD LIKE THEM TO DESIGNATE SOME FOCAL POINTS TO PARTICIPATE IN ADDING NEXT STEPS AND DETAILS TO THE STRATEGIC PLAN BECAUSE, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, THIS IS PRETTY HIGH LEVEL AND WE NOW NEED TO COME UP WITH ACTUAL, YOU KNOW, ACTION PLANS TO THAT NEXT LEVEL.
UH, THAT THE, OF COURSE, THE CITY COUNCIL, COMMUNITY RELATIONS AND CURRENT COMMISSION WORK TO FILL THOSE OPEN SPOTS, WHICH IS GOING ON RIGHT NOW WITH EXCELLENT, DIVERSE, COMMITTED CITIZENS TO CONTINUE THIS WORK.
YOU KNOW, ALL PARTIES TO START ENGAGING ADDITIONAL STAKEHOLDERS, YOU KNOW, START, YOU KNOW, KIND OF TALKING THIS UP AND, YOU KNOW, AND NOW PLANNING AND DETERMINING A TIMELINE ON HOW TO STAGE THESE ACTIONS WITH A FOCUS ON WHAT DO WE REALLY WANNA DO IN THE NEXT SIX MONTHS.
I THINK I WOULD LIKE TO MOVE THIS BULLET HERE, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL TO REVIEW AND AFFIRM THE START AND MAKE THAT LIKE THE THIRD BULLET RIGHT BELOW THE TWO IMMEDIATE ONES, OR EVEN MAKE THAT THE FIRST BULLET.
'CAUSE THAT'S WHAT WE'RE REALLY WANTING THEM TO DO, YOU KNOW, IN THE, IN THE JULY SESSION, THAT ONE WAS, UM, WHICH BULLET WAS IT THAT NOW THIS ONE RIGHT HERE.
THE, UH, THE CITY COUNCIL TO REVIEW AND REVIEW.
THAT WOULD BE MOVED UP MOVING THIS ONE TO NUMBER ONE.
SHOULD, SHOULD THERE BE A BULLET? SHOULD THERE BE A BULLET POINT THERE SOMEWHERE ABOUT THE, THE COMMISSION ITSELF, UH, ENGAGING IN, UH, CRAFTING, UH, ACTION STEPS FOR, UH, THE DIFFERENT PRIORITY AREAS? WELL, THAT'S KIND OF IMPLIED UNDER THE LAST ONE, ALL PARTIES TO REVIEW THIS PLAN AND DETERMINE A TIMELINE TO STAY THE RECOMMENDED ACTIONS.
BECAUSE THIS IS GONNA BE, YOU KNOW, THE CITY COUNCIL HAS THE BUY-IN AND THE CITY, YOU KNOW, THE, UH, FEW OF THE CITY LEADERS, LIKE THE CITY MANAGER HAS THE BUY-IN BECAUSE IT'S GONNA BE, YOU KNOW, ALL OF THE, ALL OF THE PARTIES WORKING TOGETHER TO HELP FORGE THE NEXT STEPS.
THAT'S THE IMPORTANCE OF THESE, THESE, THE WORKING GROUP, YOU KNOW, THAT, YOU KNOW, ESTABLISHING THIS LARGER WORK GROUP THAT INCLUDES, UH, CITY STAFF, BECAUSE YOU KNOW THAT THE COM THE COMMISSION ALONE CAN'T REALLY DRIVE THE PLAN
ANY OTHER FEEDBACK OR THOUGHTS? A QUESTION? MM-HMM.
SO THIS, I GUESS THIS IS A QUESTION FOR CHRISTIE.
HOW, UM, HOW FAR IN ADVANCE DO THE MEMBERS LIKE FOR THAT WORK SESSION ON THE 18TH MM-HMM,
[00:50:01]
STYLE.RIGHT? UM, SO IT REALLY DEPENDS ON WHAT Y'ALL WANT TO DO HERE TODAY.
IF YOU WANT TO, I KNOW THAT SOME CHANGES WERE MADE AND Y'ALL WANT TO UPDATE, SO I'M NOT SURE IF YOU'RE READY TO VOTE ON, UM, A FINAL DRAFT TO PRESENT TO THEM OR HOW YOU'D LIKE TO, TO DO THAT.
BUT, UM, I THINK TO BE SAFE, LET ME PULL UP.
SO, UM, IF WE COULD HAVE ALL THE MATERIALS.
SO WE ALSO HAVE THE 4TH OF JULY WEEK AS WELL.
UM, I THINK, UM, AGENDAS ARE POSTED THAT FRIDAY PRIOR, CORRECT.
THE DRAFT GOES OUT FRIDAY TO MAYOR AND CITY MANAGER AND I THINK MAYOR PROTE, BUT YEAH, THE FINALS ON MONDAY.
SO TO BE SAFE, UM, I WOULD REQUEST FROM THE COMMISSION THAT, UM, I HAVE EVERYTHING FROM Y'ALL BY THE 11TH.
UM, JUST IN CASE THERE'S ANY ISSUES OR BUFFER, UM, I THINK THAT WOULD BE A SAFE BET THERE.
AND THEN WE HAVE A LITTLE BIT OF BUFFER RUB YEAH.
INCLUDING APPROVAL BY THE 11TH FROM THE, UM, FROM THE, YEAH.
IF Y'ALL WANNA SAY AS A COMMISSION, THIS IS OUR, UH, CURRENT DRAFT THAT WE HAVE AGREED ON IS UP TO PAR AND WE'RE PRESENTING IT TO YOU THEN.
I THINK STAN IS GONNA PROVIDE THE POWERPOINT.
I'M GONNA ACTUALLY MAKE THESE CHANGES AND THE POWERPOINT OUT TO YOU BY EARLY NEXT WEEK.
AND THEN Y'ALL'S NEXT MEETING IS 16TH TWO.
SO IN THEORY,
HE IS LIKE, THIS IS NOT MY FIRST WORD.
I'M PRETTY GOOD WITH ROBERT'S RULES OF ORDER AND HOW TO MAKE MOTIONS.
AND, BECAUSE SOME TOO, I THINK COREY MADE THE POINT ABOUT ACTION ITEMS. I THINK THAT WE ALSO, I, BECAUSE I HAVE SOME SUGGESTIONS ABOUT LIKE HOW THESE WORKING GROUPS WOULD, WOULD GO, BUT IT'S PROBABLY MORE IMPORTANT TO GET THIS DONE FIRST AND THEN WE CAN GO SAY, HEY.
BECAUSE YEAH, THAT FILE DOCUMENT WOULD NEED TO BE APPROVED BY CITY COUNCIL.
UM, FROM THERE YOU CAN MM-HMM.
BUT THIS WAS, I THOUGHT IT WAS GREAT BRINGING ALL OF OUR IDEAS AND EVERYTHING TOGETHER.
UM, ONE QUESTION I WANTED TO ASK IF DAN IS STILL WITH US, DID YOU HAVE ANY CONCERNS? UM, I DON'T THINK I HAVE CONCERNS.
I THINK EVERYTHING SEEMS, SEEMS REASONABLE.
SO ARE WE WA UH, ARE, HAVE, HAVE WE FINISHED GOING THROUGH THE DEFENDANTS A AND B? OR WE'RE WE'RE NOT GONNA DO BI GUESS, I GUESS I CAN, I MEAN, WELL, NOT TO SAY THAT WE NEED TO, I'M JUST, ARE WE READY TO MAKE A MOTION OR, YEAH, NO, THE ONLY THING, THE ONLY COMMENT I WANNA MAKE HERE IS THAT, YOU KNOW, REWORDED A FEW OF THESE TO, YOU KNOW, DOES THIS, YOU KNOW, INSTEAD OF REALLY HIGHLIGHTING, YOU KNOW, ALL THE PAST LAWSUITS OR STUFF, KIND OF JUST REWORDING AND SAYING NON RESOLUTION AND LINGERING FOCUS ON PAST OCCURRENCES INSTEAD OF LOOKING FORWARD AND WORKING ON SOLUTIONS.
SO KIND OF LIFT AMAZING LANGUAGE ON THAT FIRST WEAKNESS.
AND THEN ON THREATS TO THIS WORK, UH, I, UH, I SOFTENED THIS BULLET TO MAKE IT, I, I THOUGHT I INITIALLY, I WORDED LIKE THE STATE OF TEXAS, UH, TEXAS, LIKE LEGISLATURES DISDAIN, DEIB WORK, WHICH IS KIND OF OUT, OUT, YOU KNOW, KIND OF IN THEIR FACE AND, YOU KNOW, IF THE WRONG PERSON SAW THAT, THEY MIGHT, YOU KNOW, COME AND TRY TO CLAMP DOWN ON WHAT CITIES ARE DOING, KIND OF WORDING THAT IN A MORE POLITE WAY AND JUST SAY, SAY THE POLITICIZATION TO POLITICIZATION OF DEIB EFFORTS BASED ON PARTISAN VIEWPOINTS.
YOU KNOW? AND SO I, I JUST CHANGED THE WORDING ON THAT SINCE THE FIRST DRAFT.
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JUST SIMPLY THE RESOURCES THAT WE USE THAT THESE ARE THE FIVE DOCUMENTS THAT WE, YOU KNOW, REVIEWED AND KIND OF PULLED THE BEST PRACTICES FROM.AND SO JUST, YOU KNOW, AGAIN, YOU KNOW, WHEN WHEN WE START DOING THIS WORK, THESE HOT LINKS WILL WORK AND Y'ALL GO BACK AND RE AND RELOOK AT SOME OF THESE DOCUMENTS TO USE SOME OF THEIR STRUCTURE, UH, OR THE, OR BEST PRACTICES AS THE WORK CONTINUES ON.
I THINK IT'S GOOD TO INCLUDE THOSE.
AND WE'RE TRYING TO REACH OUT AND OPEN OUR MINDS.
DID ANYONE HAVE ANYTHING ELSE, OR ARE WE READY TO MOVE TO THE NEXT PHASE MOTION? YEAH, I'LL MAKE A MOTION THAT WE APPROVE THE, THE, THE PLAN, UM, WITH THE AMENDMENTS FROM THAT WE DISCUSSED TODAY.
SECOND THIS FROM A SONG, SECOND, THAT MOTION.
UM, DID Y'ALL WANT TO ALSO, UM, VOTE TO HAVE ON THE JULY 18TH AGENDA, UM, OR AN OFFICIAL REQUEST TO CITY COUNCIL TO RENAME THE DIVERSITY INCLUSION COMMISSION TO DIVERSITY INCLUSION EQUITY, EQUITY AND BELONGING COMMISSION? OR NO? SO WHAT DO YOU THINK? DO YOU WANT TO I THINK SO.
SO THEN WHEN WE PRESENT THIS, IT'LL MAKE SENSE.
AND SO, AND BECAUSE WE'RE STATING IN HERE WHY WE DID THAT.
I'LL
JOHN, DO WE HAVE ANY OTHER, UM, LET'S SEE.
WE'RE, WE'RE GONNA HAVE A MEETING, OUR REGULAR MEETING ON THE 16TH, SO WE CAN DISCUSS OTHER MOVING FORWARD THERE.
SO UNLESS ANYONE HAS ANYTHING MOVE THAT WE ADJOURN, JUST IN THE, UH, JUST IN THE, JUST BEFORE WE AUR IN THE, UH, IN THE AGENDA FOR THE MEETING ON THE 16TH, LET'S JUST, UH, MAYBE CHRISTIE, IF WE JUST PUT IN THERE THAT, UH, THAT WE'LL, UH, DISCUSS AND, AND PAIR FOR THE PRESENTATION TO THE YEAH, BECAUSE THAT CAN BE ON THE 16TH.
YOU COULD DO LIKE RIGHT, THE 16TH.
ON THE 16TH, YOU CAN GO THROUGH AND LIKE, YOU KNOW, REHEARSE, PRESENTING IT, YOU KNOW, GO THROUGH THE SLIDES, I THINK THAT'S, FIND IT, FIND ANY, AND THEN WHEN YOU PRESENT, WHEN YOU DO A DRESS REHEARSAL, YOU'LL FIND ANY MISSPELLINGS OR, OR WHATEVER.
I DON'T THINK IT'S GREAT WORK.
UH, A MOVE THAT WE ADJOURNED AND WE HAVE TO SAY THE TIME.