Human Relations Commission

MINUTES CITY OF DEKALB HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION May 2, 2017 The Human Relations Commission held a Meeting on May 2, 2017 in the Executive Conference Room at City Hall. Chair Larry Apperson called the meeting to order at 6:34 p.m. A. ROLL CALL The following members of the HRC were present: Larry Apperson (Chair), Maurice Bailey, Joe Gastiger, Norden Gilbert, Lisa King and Ellingsworth Webb. The following City staff members were present: Management Analyst Lauren Stott. Notes were taken by Analyst Stott. B. APPROVAL OF THE AGENDA – ADDITIONS / DELETIONS The agenda was approved. C. APPROVAL OF MINUTES The minutes from the February 7, 2017 meeting were approved. D. PUBLIC PARTICIPATION No public participation occurred. E. OLD BUSINESS a. Cultural Competency Training Update Stott provided an overview of the Cultural Competency Training. Stott indicated that Dr. Cohen and Dr. Flynn would be conducting three stages of training with City staff, and that the first stage would take place in late May 2017. Stott said that all employees aside from Police and Fire personnel would be trained in May 2017 due to overtime costs. She indicated that stage two would take place in FY2018 and will include two sessions for employees. All employees, including Police and Fire personnel, would be included in FY2018. Regular Meeting May 2, 2017 Page 2 of 4 Stott said that the third stage of training would take place in 2019 and would include an intensive application of the principles learned in the first two stages. The Commissioners asked Stott if she would be willing to provide feedback about the training session in late May. She said she would bring a report back to the HRC at its June meeting. b. HRC Brochure Stott distributed copies of the HRC brochure to the Commissioners and indicated that more copies could be provided as needed. She also indicated that the brochure had been posted on the City’s website. The Commissioners asked whether the City could use a translator to provide a version of the brochure in Spanish. Stott indicated that the City has had needs in the past related to Spanish translation. She indicated she would learn whether the City has a resource for translation and report whether that resource could assist with translation for the brochure. Commissioner Gastiger recommended using a foreign language student at NIU for translating in the future. Chair Apperson said he would like the Commissioners to brainstorm locations to display the brochures and send an email to Stott with those recommended locations. He indicated the discussion of brochure would be on the next agenda. c. Chapter 49 Municipal Code Review Chair Apperson said he wanted to ensure that no further action was required on the review of Chapter 49 of the Municipal Code. He said he thought there might be an outstanding issue mentioned by Commissioner Gilbert at the February 2017 meeting. Commissioner Gilbert indicated he would review the previously distributed Chapter 49 materials and bring up any outstanding issues at a future meeting. d. Sanctuary City Updates Commissioner Gastiger distributed materials titled “Solidarity and Sanctuary in DeKalb.” Commissioner Gastiger reviewed the contents of an editorial statement made by Police Chief Gene Lowery in the (DeKalb) Daily Chronicle. The Commissioners discussed recent statements from Chief Lowery and City Manager Anne Marie Gaura regarding DeKalb’s choice not to prosecute illegal immigrants.  The Commissioners discussed the issues surrounding official and unofficial policies and expressed concerns that, unless a statement is declared as policy, action of officials can change. The Commissioners thanked Commissioner Gastiger for providing additional information. Commissioner Bailey indicated that he is concerned about issues that afflict members of the DeKalb community related to entrapment and other adverse law enforcement practices. e. Ex-Offender Re-Entry Updates Commissioner Webb provided several handouts, including one titled Analysis: Jeff Sessions’ Record on Criminal Justice and another called The Debt Never Paid: How to Reform a Broken Criminal Justice System that Prevents Ex-Offenders from Achieving Self-Sufficiency. Commissioner Webb provided a broad overview of trends throughout the nation and in the DeKalb area related to procedural justice practices and procedures. Commissioner Webb also briefly recapped a Mother Jones event in DeKalb on May 1 that included Illinois Democratic gubernatorial candidates. He indicated they there are several candidates that provide a viable alternative to the current governor. Commissioner Webb also provided information about a website called reentrycentral.org, a resource for Commissioners to use to learn updates about reentry issues. f. Discussion of Chief Lowery’s Procedural Justice Presentation Chair Apperson indicated that, after the presentation provided to the HRC, Chief Lowery provided a similar presentation to the City Council. Commissioner Webb said he observed various reactions to Chief Lowery’s presentation to the City Council. F. NEW BUSINESS a. Elected Officials Transition and the HRC Chair Apperson indicated that he intended to reach out to the Mayor- and Aldermen- elect to invite them to a future HRC meeting. He said he would also include a copy of the HRC brochure. Regular Meeting May 2, 2017 Page 4 of 4 Stott indicated that terms for several Commissioners were coming to an end in June: Chair Apperson, Commissioner King, Commissioner Williams and Commissioner Gilbert. She said that Mayor-Elect Jerry Smith would be reaching out via phone to the Commissioners with soon-to-expire terms to ask whether they are interested in continuing as Commissioners. G. ADJOURNMENT The meeting adjourned at 7:41 p.m. _____________________________________________________________________ LAUREN STOTT, Management Analyst Minutes approved by the Human Relations Commission on June 6, 2017.