Laserfiche WebLink
22 <br />City of Eugene Human Rights Commission <br /> <br />Mission Statement <br />The mission of the Human Rights Commission (HRC) is to promote implementation of human rights values and <br />principles in all City of Eugene programs and throughout the wider community. <br /> <br />To carry out this mission the Commission shall affirm, encourage and initiate programs and services within the <br />City of Eugene’s government and the wider community designed to place priority upon respecting, protecting, <br />and fulfilling the full range of universal human rights as enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human <br />Rights. To support and promote human rights, the Commission will: <br />a) Provide human rights education <br />b) Be proactive in human rights efforts <br />c) Address human rights violations <br />d) Help ensure active public participation <br />e) Be transparent and open <br />f) Be publicly accountable for human rights progress <br /> <br />SOME EXAMPLES OF WORK THE EUGENE HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION HAS DONE <br /> <br />• Bringing a human rights lens to City operations. Examples: The Commission successfully pressed for <br />creation of a community-based oversight committee, including a human rights representative, on <br />building projects proposed by developers seeking tax incentives under the City’s Multi-Use Property Tax <br />Exemption (MUPTE). Internal to the City, the Commission has been working with City staff on carrying <br />out their Diversity and Equity Strategic Plan, which includes implementation of human rights values and <br />principles in all City departments. A Commissioner serves on the staff’s Equity and Human Rights Board <br />which oversees the Plan. Commissioners also serve as liaisons from the HRC to other City boards, <br />committees or commissions, including the Police Commission and Civilian Review Board. <br />• Advising the Mayor, City Council, and City Manager. The Commission: sought and received Council <br />endorsement of the Integration Network for Immigrants of Lane County Statement of Principles that <br />welcomes immigrants to our community; has advised Council on the need to address the criminalization <br />of homelessness in Eugene; and received the Council’s unanimous approval for revising the City’s <br />Human Rights Ordinance to include the full range of human rights in response to findings from a 2011 <br />Human Rights Listening project involving wide community participation. <br />• Outreach to and collaboration with community groups. Commission members have established <br />relationships with such community groups as: Eugene/Springfield NAACP, Integration Network for <br />Immigrants of Lane County, Springfield/Eugene Showing Up for Racial Justice, Beyond Toxics, Juventud <br />FACETA, the PRIDE Festival, Lane County Fair Shot, Eugene Winnemem Support Group and many others. <br />• Bringing human rights education to the community. The Human Rights Commission stages a variety of <br />public events, often in collaboration with other social justice groups in the community. For example, the <br />Commission partnered with the Community Alliance of Lane County (CALC) on a forum called “Voices of <br />the Homeless,” with CALC and the First Congregational Church on “Human Rights and the Crisis of Youth <br />Homelessness,” and with LGBTQ groups on the annual “Transgender Remembrance Day.” <br />• Annual Celebrations of International Human Rights Day Each December, the Commission hosts a <br />public celebration of the anniversary of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights that focuses upon <br />human rights issues in Eugene. Themes vary and have included “Intersections of Racism and Rights” and <br />“Immigrant Rights Are Human Rights!” <br /> <br />September 12, 2018, Work Session - Item 1