Title
Chief Administrative Office recommending the Board receive an update relative to the work being done by the Human Rights Commission, consider a proposal to hire an external facilitator to provide training to the Human Rights Commission on the science of implicit bias and de-biasing interventions as well as how to effectively hold a dialogue with people who have experienced discrimination, and assist the Commission in the development of the roles and responsibilities of the Commission, and provide direction to staff.
FUNDING: General Fund.
Body
On June 30, 2020, Supervisor Parlin made a recommendation to the Board to consider requesting the Human Rights Commission to update its bylaws with language to create a formal process for issues brought before them before putting any issues on their agenda. Based on a motion by Supervisor Novasel, seconded by Supervisor Hidahl, the Board directed that the Chief Administrative Office and County Counsel to work with the Human Rights Commission to prepare a proposal on how to proceed.
Since that time, the Commission has held three meetings during which they discussed potential changes to their bylaws, developing a draft work plan, and the Commission’s role in the County, in which staff from the CAO, County Counsel and Human Resources all participated in the discussion. Included in this discussion, and as currently stated in the ordinance establishing the Human Rights Commission, it identifies one of the responsibilities of the Commission is "To inquire into incidents of tension and conflict among or between people, including people subject to prejudice and discrimination due to race, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, physical disability, mental disability, marital status, gender, sexual orientation, socioeconomic status, civic interest, or any other factors, and to take action by means of conciliation, conference and persuasion to alleviate those tensions and conflict."
At their August 17, 2020, m...
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