>From :
Thomas Pauline <[EMAIL PROTECTED]>
To :
[EMAIL PROTECTED]
Subject :
Letter Requesting Input by the Community - On The New
Civil Rights Director (Edited)
Sent :
Sunday, April 18, 2004 1:58 PM
Letter Requesting Input by the Community
The Mayor and the City of Minneapolis are moving
forward in the process of hiring a new Civil Rights
Director. The process has narrowed the candidate pool
to four finalists. Those finalists are:
�Harry Davis Jr. � Principal Planning Analyst for
Hennepin County Children family & Adult Services
Division
�Jessica Lynn (Hughes) Jackson � Associate Attorney,
Blackwell/Igbanugo law firm
�W.H. Tyrone Terrill � Director of St. Paul
Human Rights Department
�Jayne Kahlifa � Managing Director, Penumbra Theatre
We are sure that some of you are familiar with the
work of one or more of these candidates. It is of
utmost importance that you and the rest of the
community express your interest, ideas and concerns
about the selection of one or all of these candidates
for the Director job. If you are reporting
information about
any particular candidate, please be accurate with your
comments and as brief as possible.
The Civil Rights Department administers the police
misconduct investigations, investigates and resolves
cases of discrimination in housing, public
accommodations and public services. The Department
administers the employment compliance program which
requires the hiring of and fair treatment of women,
persons of color and persons with disabilities for
nearly 3,000 employers who contract with City
government. Finally the Department administers the
Small Underutilized Business Program. That program
ensures businesses of color and women-owned businesses
share in the some 400 million dollars of annual City
business.
As you can see, the Civil Rights Director is not just
a �figure-head� position, but one that is crucial and
critical in advancing fairness, inclusion and economic
development in under-served communities in or city.
The Civil Rights Department and its director have the
authority of law to make changes and enforce
non-discrimination and affirmative mandates. It is
complemented by the Minneapolis Civil Rights
Commission. The Commission is a 21 member citizens
body that has the power of a district court to order
compliance with the equal opportunity mandates of the
City�s Civil Rights law.
The Community Collaborative has been a leading and
sometimes lone voice in demanding that the City hire a
competent change agent who can bring economic and
other opportunities to the communities of color in
Minneapolis. You can help us achieve the goals of
economic equity by giving us your comments, criticisms
or praise of any or the entire list of finalist. We
are in the process of putting together a major article
for the Minnesota Spokesman newspaper on the upcoming
selection
of a Civil Rights Director. We want to make sure that
the community�s concerns are heard by our City leaders
so that they can select a Director who can make a
real, positive and substantial changes in our
communities.
We will not have an opportunity like this one in the
near future. The community recently played a major
role in selecting the new Chief of Police, Bill
McManus. We can do the same with the Civil Rights
Director.
If you have concerns or comments, e-mail them to me
right away, but no later than, April 21, 2004 In
stating your concerns, you might want to think about
the following:
1.Are these the kind of candidates who have the
courage and tenacity to bring about the elimination of
discrimination in Minneapolis?
2.Are these the kind of candidates who will place
civil rights and the needs of the community above
their personal interest?
3.Are these people who are comfortable in confronting
the status quo and showing the kind of leadership that
will dislodge entrenched and systemic racism in
Minneapolis the
City and its institutions and organizations?
4.Are these the kind of people who understand the
critical link between economic development and
championing the civil rights agenda in Minneapolis?
5.Will any of these people have the creativity and
capacity to articulate new ideas and concepts to
address exclusion of persons of color in institutions
in the City of Minneapolis?
6.Are these the kinds of people who, once in office,
will create a partnership with, speak to and listen to
the needs of the communities of color?
7.Are these the kinds of people who upon assuming
office will blend into the bureaucratic �status quo�
in order to protect and preserve their own personal
interest?
Your comments on any or all of these four candidates
are critical at this moment. We agree to keep your
comments confidential, and will not quote any names
unless you are willing to disclose your name. I have
met personally with the Mayor and some leading City
Council members. They are waiting for our ideas on
this important matter. Let�s not be silent on this
one and get saddled with another �pot tender�. Take a
few moments and respond to me by putting your comments
in writing and e-mailing back. Fredrick Douglas said,
�Power concedes nothing without a demand � it never
did and it never will�. Thank you for your help and
guidance in this matter.
Posted by Shawn Lewis, Field Neighborhood
--
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