Laserfiche WebLink
repugnant and have no place in our community, but the resolution talks about what <br />people believe and he does not want to officially condemn people for their beliefs. <br />MOTION TO AMEND: Councilor Clark, seconded by Councilor Taylor, moved to remove <br />reference to people's beliefs in this resolution. <br />o Council Discussion: <br />o Councilor Clark- clarified that he would like to remove anything that talks about a <br />group or individual's beliefs and the City Council condemning them for those beliefs; <br />addressed factual mistakes in the resolution. <br />o Councilor Zelenka - thanked the Human Rights Commission for writing the resolution; <br />addressed Section H, which highlights Oregon's ugly history on race and the importance <br />of including that in the resolution; talked about the reason for this conversation and the <br />current climate in our country where people are openly presenting themselves as white <br />nationalists and the City Council needs to stand against this hatred, bigotry, and <br />discrimination. <br />o Councilor Syrett - talked about the important distinction that the resolution language is <br />not condemning the people who hold these beliefs, but taking a stand against these <br />beliefs that claim that white people are better than other people; said she wants to make <br />a statement affirming that all people in the community deserve to be safe and welcome <br />without fearing violent or harassing action against them. <br />o Councilor Yeh - said that Section C seems to be a definition of white nationalism and she <br />wouldn't be in favor of removing it; shared appreciation for those who wrote the <br />resolution and included next steps and reference to Oregon's history. <br />o Councilor Semple - said she understood some of Councilor Clark's concerns because she <br />wouldn't want to say someone couldn't believe or think something; discussed what the <br />definition of condemn means and said a person can believe whatever they want but <br />can't do bad things because of it. <br />o Councilor Pryor - said it was an interesting point to think about where belief ends and <br />action begins and this resolution is intended to show City Council's belief and policy is <br />around this issue. <br />o Councilor Taylor - said she didn't see the need for the resolution because there are <br />already laws that prevent people from doing bad things. <br />o Mayor Vinis - talked about the Civil Rights movement and how this resolution doesn't <br />break any new ground by making a statement about the kinds of behavior that are <br />considered unacceptable as a community. <br />o Councilor Clark- said that the resolution isn't saying that someone's beliefs are illegal, <br />but that City Council is condemning those beliefs; said the problem with condemning <br />people with certain beliefs is that there may be a future City Council made up of people <br />with different beliefs; expressed discomfort with naming the official belief of the City of <br />Eugene. <br />o Councilor Syrett - talked about how protectors of free speech say that the best way to <br />combat speech is with more speech; said they should both defend people's right to <br />express their views and, in the right circumstance, condemn views they find dangerous <br />and unacceptable. <br />o Councilor Semple - asked for Councilor Clark to restate the motion to make it clear. <br />o Councilor Clark- restated the motion to remove all references to any person or group's <br />belief, said he would support a motion if the references to beliefs were changed to <br />actions. <br />o Councilor Zelenka -asked Councilor Taylor if she would support the resolution if the <br />changes referenced in the motion were made. <br />MINUTES - Eugene City Council July 22, 2019 Page 2 <br />Work Session <br />