Human Relations Committee

Laconia Human Relations Special Meeting January 12, 2021 3PM – 4:30 via Zoom Agenda Welcome and Roll Call Review and Acceptance of December 8, 15 & 17, 2020 Meeting Minutes Review and Acceptance of Financial Report – 2 nd quarter 2021 P P Old Business • MLK Jr Celebration • Homeless Task Force New Business • Reappointment by the Mayor for 2021 • Discussion of 2021 Election of Officers • Community Engagement Proposal • Other business • Next Meeting February 9, 2021 at 3pm via Zoom Public Comment The public is invited to offer their opinions. Initially, they will be limited to four minutes until all have had an opportunity to speak. Each person is constrained to their time period or to ask questions of the committee. The public will be visible but muted until unmuted by the chair. Members of the public wishing to speak will use the “raise hand” option. Everyone is expected to speak respectfully of other people’s opinion. The Chair may mute someone if they begin getting off topic or speaking disrespectfully at their discretion. The meeting will end at 4:30pm. -------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------- Note: The meeting will be held online through Zoom and will begin at 3pm although people are encouraged check in early and contact Glenn Smith, City of Laconia at 524-3877 x 225 or email at gsmith@laconianh.gov if you are having trouble connecting. 30TU U30T You are invited to a Zoom webinar. When: Jan 12, 2021 03:00 PM Eastern Time (US and Canada) Topic: Human Relations Commission Please click the link below to join the webinar: https://us02web.zoom.us/j/86310317847?pwd=bG1zN1BpemIzejZYWmgzVlpsN3JQZz09 Passcode: 677217 Or iPhone one-tap : US: +13017158592,,86310317847#,,,,*677217# or +13126266799,,86310317847#,,,,*677217# Or Telephone: Dial(for higher quality, dial a number based on your current location): US: +1 301 715 8592 or +1 312 626 6799 or +1 646 558 8656 or +1 253 215 8782 or +1 346 248 7799 or +1 669 900 9128 Webinar ID: 863 1031 7847 Passcode: 677217 International numbers available: https://us02web.zoom.us/u/kbITJW7Nnr 9:43 AM LHRC 12/31/20 Profit & Loss Accrual Basis July through December 2020 Jul - Dec 20 Ordinary Income/Expense Income 43400 ꞏ Direct Public Support 43410 ꞏ Government Support 2,000.00 Total 43400 ꞏ Direct Public Support 2,000.00 Total Income 2,000.00 Expense 60900 ꞏ Expense 60130 ꞏ Yard Signs -20.00 Total 60900 ꞏ Expense -20.00 Total Expense -20.00 Net Ordinary Income 2,020.00 Net Income 2,020.00 Page 1 9:44 AM LHRC 12/31/20 Balance Sheet Accrual Basis As of December 31, 2020 Dec 31, 20 ASSETS Current Assets Checking/Savings 10100 ꞏ LCI 3,398.62 Total Checking/Savings 3,398.62 Total Current Assets 3,398.62 TOTAL ASSETS 3,398.62 LIABILITIES & EQUITY Equity 30000 ꞏ Opening Balance Equity 2,475.62 32000 ꞏ Unrestricted Net Assets -1,097.00 Net Income 2,020.00 Total Equity 3,398.62 TOTAL LIABILITIES & EQUITY 3,398.62 Page 1  Martin Luther King Jr. Celebration Laconia Human Relations Committee The Laconia Human Relations Committee will host a Community Forum with a panel on Sunday, January 17 th at 3pm. The Forum will include a playing of a portion of Dr. King’s P P “I Have A Dream” speech and a panel discussion of the meaning of his life and legacy as it applies to us here in Laconia. The public forum will allow public comments and interaction with panel members. David’s Op Ed “What are your dreams?” will be published on Thursday January 14 th . P P On that day, the paper will also begin running an our 1/8” ad for the forum. LHRC – MLK p.1  Martin Luther King Jr. Shared His Dreams What are your dreams? Laconia Human Relations Committee On August 28 th , 1963 Martin Luther King Jr. spoke before 250,00 people from the steps P P of the Lincoln Memorial. This speech was what we call the “I Have A Dream” speech. He was speaking during a time at once alien and yet not unfamiliar. He had become an important leader in the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s. Like so many movements, even today, there was a tension between peaceful protest and fighting back with the same violence used by many of the opponents of civil rights and justice. Rev. King began his speech reminding us that the Emancipation Proclamation, the Declaration of Independence, and the U.S. Constitution guaranteed rights that were being denied to black people saying that “…the Negro is still sadly crippled by the manacles of segregation and the chains of discrimination. … Now is the time to make real the promises of democracy. Now is the time to rise from the dark and desolate valley of segregation to the sunlit path of racial justice.” He went on to articulate a non-violent approach: “…there is something that I must say to my people, who stand on the warm threshold which leads into the palace of justice: In the process of gaining our rightful place, we must not be guilty of wrongful deeds. Let us not seek to satisfy our thirst for freedom by drinking from the cup of bitterness and hatred. We must forever conduct our struggle on the high plane of dignity and discipline. We must not allow our creative protest to degenerate into physical violence. Again and again, we must rise to the majestic heights of meeting physical force with soul force.” He went on to say, “The marvelous new militancy which has engulfed the Negro community must not lead us to a distrust of all white people, for many of our white brothers, as evidenced by their presence here today, have come to realize that their destiny is tied up with our destiny. And they have come to realize that their freedom is inextricably bound to our freedom.” Reverend King continued: “Let us not wallow in the valley of despair, I say to you today, my friends. And so even though we face the difficulties of today and tomorrow, I still have a dream. It is a dream deeply rooted in the American dream. I have a dream that one day this nation will rise up and live out the true meaning of its creed: “We hold these truths to be self-evident, that all men are created equal.” He continued with several more of his dreams that he thought were important to the struggle of his time. Reading them I realized that it wasn’t the dreams themselves that were important so much as the act of visualizing the future we want. Today, we are in danger once again of falling victim to the violence and negativity of extremists and our dreams of “a more perfect union” are being drowned out. Indeed, this is a time when tyrants emerge who will try replace our dreams with their twisted visions. MLK Op Ed p.1 To quote Michelle Obama: “The work of putting America back together, of truly repairing what is broken, isn’t the work of any individual politician or political party. It’s up to each of us to do our part. To reach out. To listen. And to hold tight to the truth and values that have always led this country forward. It will be an uncomfortable, sometimes painful process. But if we enter into it with an honest and unwavering love of our country, then maybe we can finally start to heal.”[Tweet 1-7-2021] As we contemplate the life and legacy of Martin Luther King Jr. ( Wikipedia ), let us put 30TU U 30T forth our positive dreams for Laconia, New Hampshire, and the United States. Let us imagine “Our Better Angels”. Bring your ideas and dreams for a better Laconia to the Zoom Forum celebrating Reverend King this coming Sunday, January 17 th at 3pm.P P This Forum is an annual event of the Laconia Human Relations Committee to celebrate the Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Note: On Wednesday January 20 th , the Laconia Daily Sun will be sponsoring their P P second Community Conversation from 5pm to 6:30pm on Zoom. The topic will be on tolerance. MLK Op Ed p.2  I Have A Dream ... Annual Celebration of Rev. Martin Luther King Jr. Sunday January 17, 2021 sponsored by Laconia Human Relations Committee connect via Zoom Link on City Website - Laconia.gov  Laconia Human Relations Committee Community Engagement Program DRAFT 01/04/2021 The Laconia Human Relations Committee (LHRC) strives to have positive and lasting impact on our local community. Recent events have increased public awareness and engagement regarding intolerance and racism and have opened the door to more public discussion about the topics troubling our community and our country. To that end, we would like to create a Community Engagement Program focused on opening a dialogue surrounding the critical issues that are troubling our community and the opportunities we have for solving these issues. This program would feature three key components to spur discussion, engage people and open a dialogue. It will be run in conjunction with the Laconia Daily Sun (LDS). 1. A bi-monthly column in the LDS. The LHRC will suggest, prioritize and agree upon the topics of interest and discussion and, with the editors of the LDS, will schedule these columns for publication. If this program is successful, we can make the columns more frequent (e.g. monthly). A subcommittee of LHRC members will form for each topic to author the column and present it to the LHRC for approval. 2. Related content in the LDS. The LDS will, based upon this editorial calendar, prepare related articles/content to enhance the selected topics. The publication of these related articles will coincide with the publication of the LHRC column. 3. Scheduled discussion forum. A discussion forum, similar to the Tolerance forum, will be scheduled and announced as part of the publication of the column and related content. Each forum will be moderated by the LDS, and panelists will be invited based upon each column’s topic. Potential Topics of Interest • Democracy in America • Democratic process (and the subversion of the process) • Racism • Civil discourse • Equality vs equity • Holocaust and genocide • Exercising civil rights • …