Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAboutCC Minutes - 01/24/00 Work Session MINUTES Eugene City Council Work Session McNutt Room--City Hall January 24, 2000 5:30 p.m. COUNCILORS PRESENT: Bobby Lee, Betty Taylor, Nancy Nathanson, Pat Fart, Scott Meisner, David Kelly, Gary Rayor, Gary Pap~. Mayor James D. Torrey called the meeting to order. Mayor Torrey introduced Tom Tallon, the City's new Fire Chief. Mr. Tallon was welcomed by the council. He stated he was happy to be in Eugene and looked forward to working with the council. A. Work Session on Hate Crimes Marcy Middleton, chair of the Eugene Human Rights Commission, thanked the mayor and council for allowing the commission to make its presentation. Ms. Middleton introduced Michele Lefkowith of the Northwest Coalition for Human Dignity. Ms. Lefkowith noted that she was also involved with Communities Against Hate and would soon take a position with the Northwest Coalition for Human Dignity. Those organizations were part of an international network of human rights organizations and activists monitoring the factions of the white supremacy movement. Ms. Lefkowith described various hate groups active throughout the United States and in Oregon, reporting that there had been an increase in hate crimes nationally and locally, and the white supremacy movement was growing. She said that increasingly, such groups were using the Internet more to reach people and targeting young people through the use of music, which could also be used to raise money for the groups. Ms. Nathanson and Mr. Rayor arrived at the meeting. Ms. Lefkowith described several examples of the increase in local bias crime and the individuals involved in those crimes. Mr. Fart arrived at the meeting. Ms. Lefkowith discussed hate crimes activity up and down the I-5 corridor in Oregon, saying that there had been a dramatic increase throughout the state with connections to California white supremacists who had come from that state's prison system. She said that a Portland white supremacist organization had an active affiliate in Eugene and was running a campaign to recruit inmates in the prison system. She suggested that many people convicted of hate crimes in the late 1980s and early 1990s were soon to be released from prison, which could lead to an even more dramatic increase in hate crimes. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 1 Work Session Ms. Lefkowith said the system was not working as well as it could, and white supremacists were not being penalized in a manner commensurate with their activities. She cited examples of ways in which the system was failing, which included the failure of those responsible for running the system to understand the significance of the crimes involved. Police Chief Jim Hill introduced Sergeant Chuck Tilby, who discussed the environment in Oregon and Lane County for neo-Nazi and white supremacist skinhead street gangs. Sergeant Tilby described the crimes of white supremacists and neo-Nazis as terroristic in nature because they were focused on the psychology, well-being, and feeling of safety of targeted members of the community. The level of activity by such gangs tended to be cyclical because the involved individuals were in and out of jail or supervision. He said that local skinhead groups were networked with white supremacists groups throughout the Northwest and the country. Sergeant Tilby agreed with Ms. Lefkowith that the soon-to-be released inmates serving time for hate crimes would create a sharp increase in such crimes in the future after their supervision had ended. Sergeant Tilby concurred with Ms. Lefkowith about the importance of the Internet to the white supremacist groups in getting their message out. The Internet reached many people and it was easy to present a professional-appearing message using that tool. Chief Hill introduced Captain Roy Brown, Captain Pat Ryan, and Sergeant Kathy Flynn of the Eugene Police Department, who were involved in the department's work on bias crimes and who were also present to respond to questions. Chief Hill discussed the Eugene Police Department's response to hate crimes, reporting that the police dispatched an officer in response to every report of a bias crime. The officers followed carefully developed procedures in their response, which included ensuring that the victim knows about all the resources available to him/her, such as the Victims Assistance Program. The department also conducts a neighborhood canvass, which heightens community awareness of such events and lets people know the department takes such reports very seriously. An investigator was assigned to each case for follow-up, which included maintaining contact with the victim. Chief Hill said that in addition, the department works with organizations such as Ms. Lefkowith's and attends community events. Ms. Lefkowith said that she and Chief Hill had discussed the possibility of Eugene holding a statewide hate crimes symposium. She encouraged the council to become involved in the symposium if it occurred. She said that a draft of possible events had been developed. Ms. Lefkowith said that the commission also discussed working collaboratively with other community groups on an anti-hate campaign. Willie Blasher, Jr., of the Human Rights Commission said that the commission was seeking to amend its work plan to develop a community education campaign, which would require $10,000 to fund. He asked the council for its continued support of the commission as it carried out the work plan. Mr. Blasher said that as a minority, he recognized that the community still had a way to go in overcoming hate, and it would take a heartfelt and concerted effort on the part of all citizens to do so. He asked the council for its leadership on the issue. Ms. Middleton reviewed the actions requested of the council: First, to take a stand against hate and work to fight it and raise awareness. She suggested the City could work to create awareness about the issue with the business community, specifically the Chamber of Commerce, MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 2 Work Session which could work in partnership with the Human Rights Commission to include hate crimes and cultural diversity as elements in its leadership forums. Second, Ms. Middleton asked the council to respond to hate crimes incidents when they occur, and to make strong public statements opposing acts of hate and statements of support for hate crime victims. Third, Ms. Middleton asked the council to call upon the commission to help in responding when a response is needed. Ms. Middleton discussed funding for a public awareness campaign. She said that the commission was requesting $10,000 in contingency funds from the council to partially underwrite those costs. She described the elements of the proposed education campaign, which would be conducted by a coalition of human rights organizations that included the Human Rights Commission. Mr. Farr said that leadership was a main tool in responding to and preventing future hate crimes. He said that the council, as community leaders, had that responsibility. He said the commission discussed many ideas, such as that mentioned by Ms. Middleton regarding the Chamber of Commerce's leadership training, and the chamber had been very responsive to his inquiries when he had called to ask about the possibility. Mr. Farr said that the council had repeatedly demonstrated its intolerance for hate crimes, but he believed that now was a good time to step up its efforts against hate. He added that the contingency fund request was not the only source of funding for the public campaign. Mr. Kelly stressed the importance of the information about hate crimes activity provided to the council by the commission. He regretted the problem of hate crimes was growing in the Northwest. Mr. Kelly supported both the amended work program and contingency fund request. He said he was a member of Temple Beth Israel and recalled his sense of shock and the feeling of violation created by the shooting at the temple. He asked the commission to let him know how he could help. Mr. Meisner expressed support for a proactive, rather than a defensive, approach, and said that a public education campaign was an example of a proactive approach. He said that it was his experience that many people are the victims of hate crimes but are reluctant to talk about them. He asked how the City could help overcome that problem. Greg Rikhoff, Human Rights Program staff, responded that the commission could work with organizations that had trust and respect with vulnerable communities. He agreed that often reporting does not occur because people feel it puts them at risk. Mr. Rikhoff said that the coalition of human rights organizations being formed had a tremendous amount of inclusiveness and it involved many organizations who could help create a safety net for those who feel targeted. He said that the coalition was a proactive effort that would employ the City's Human Rights Support System, giving victims someone to relate to and share their stories with. Mr. Rikhoff believed the coalition had the tools to reach out to those individuals. Responding to a follow-up question from Mr. Meisner, Mr. Rikhoff anticipated that some of the contingency funds would go toward developing proactive outreach tools to vulnerable communities. Responding to a question from Ms. Nathanson regarding the scope of the public education campaign and the commission's coordination with the school districts, Mr. Rikhoff said that the executives from the organizations involved have begun to discuss how to send a shared message. The human rights and diversity staff from the school districts, Lane Community College, and University of Oregon also met to discuss the issue. He anticipated multiple tools would be used to send out the message as opposed to a single "big splash," although the MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 3 Work Session coalition would do a "big splash" message as well. He believed that the connection to education was critical to the outreach. Ms. Nathanson expressed appreciation that the coalition was not "starting from scratch" and had staff and volunteers with the training and skills to collaborate to create a program. Mr. Pap~ said that it was sad that a community that prided itself on tolerance found itself in such a position, but he believed that the commission would help in attacking the problem. He asked if the City had the tools it needed in the State crime code and City ordinances to handle enforcement of hate crimes. Chief Hill responded that he was not aware of any gaps. Captain Ryan added that Oregon Revised Statutes contained two intimidation statutes he believed would cover most offenses. He noted that the City ordinances were much broader. Mr. Pap~ asked if the victims of hate crimes generally felt supported by the City. Captain Ryan said he hoped so, adding that over the last several years any time a crime was labeled a bias crime it was automatically assigned to an investigator, so follow-up and a personal contact occurs so that the victim knows where he or she could turn. He deferred questions about prosecution to the District Attorney's Office. Ms. Lefkowith said her experience with the Eugene Police Department was very positive and it had been very supportive of her work and her position as a potential target in the community. She said that once the police had completed its work, there was the potential the police report could get "sandbagged" at another level. She did not know if the District Attorney's Office placed a priority on hate crimes or was aggressively pursuing such crimes, and suggested a public campaign might spur more aggressive prosecution. Mr. Pap~ said that criminal enforcement was the least effective way of addressing the problem, and suggested the youth leadership forum be asked to provide input. Mr. Pap~ asked if the contingency fund allocation should be processed through the regular budget process. City Manager Jim Johnson indicated he would prefer to allocate the funds now rather than in July. The ongoing costs of supporting the coalition could be addressed through the regular budget process. Mr. Pap~ asked if the amount proposed was sufficient. Mr. Rikhoff indicated that research indicated such campaigns range from $7,000 at the Iow end to $40,000 at the high end, and the coalition was attempting to identify a realistic starting amount that would provide a good campaign. He mentioned other agency contributions and in-kind donations, noting that the City's contribution was just part of the total. Mr. Pap~ thanked the commission for its educational presentation. At the request of Mr. Lee, Captain Ryan provided statistics for hate crimes in Eugene, stating that there were 24 in 1997; 49 in 1998; and 25 in 1999. In 1999, 11 of the reported crimes were race-related; 3 were based on religious belief; 10 were based on sexual orientation; and 1 was based on political orientation. Mr. Lee asked for more information about referrals to the Victims Advocates Program. Chief Hill described the program, adding that the City could also call upon CAHOOTS for such services. Mr. Rikhoff added that the Human Rights Support System also was used to assist victims in overcoming their trauma and dealing with the legal system if necessary. Mayor Torrey expressed hope that there would be outreach to young children, such as those in the earlier grades. By the time children reach the third or fourth grade, they were beginning to MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 4 Work Session pick up on discrimination. He encouraged the HRC to go to KidSports and other youth-focused programs to reinforce how people should be treated. Mayor Torrey said there had been instances where youth had been brought to the administration's notice for racial harassment; if the student was corrected so he or she did not do so in the future, they should be recognized for that and it should not be assumed that they would offend again. He said that the same was true for those coming out of prison. Ms. Taylor noted her concurrence with Mayor Torrey's remarks. She also agreed with Mr. Pap8 that punishment does not always address the problem; helping people to understand each other better was a better approach. She asked if crimes against women were considered hate crimes. Mr. Rikhoff said that crimes against women were being increasingly recognized as hate crimes, although not in Oregon. Those crimes were being tracked. Ms. Taylor asked which groups were least likely to report hate crimes. Mr. Rikhoff said those hate crimes involving sexual orientation were among those least likely to be reported, and there were often members of the Asian and Latino community who were reluctant to report. He said that crimes against young people were the largest category of nonreported crimes, and those individuals cut across all genders and races. Ms. Taylor said that people often become members of hate groups in prison and she questioned whether it was positive to put offenders in jail. Chief Hill agreed that prejudices were often reinforced by others in jail, but pointed out that once in jail, a person was unable to offend. He did not think jail was the preferable option in all cases but emphasized the importance of having a sanction for individuals committing hate crimes. Chief Hill noted that when people notorious for committing such crimes leave the prison system, staff contacts them to let them know the City was aware they were out of prison and that their former activities would not be tolerated. He said that it was difficult to change the views of an adult, and agreed with Mayor Torrey that it was the best approach to target young children who have not formed prejudices. Mr. Rayor thought the City's priorities were "right on" in this issue, and that staff and the HRC were doing excellent work. He said that he was willing to be a leader and speak out against hate crimes. He requested staff and the commission's assistance in doing so, and thanked the commission for its work. Mr. Farr called for a consistent, proactive, leveraged approach to the issues of hate crimes to have the most effect. He agreed with Mayor Torrey's remarks about the need to work with young children before prejudices were formed. He also commended the commission and staff for their considerable work in addressing human rights issues. Mr. Farr asked Sergeant Tilby if Eugene had a transitory population of skinheads. Sergeant Tilby said that it was possible. He clarified that when he referred to skinheads in Eugene he had been talking about racial skinheads. Mr. Farr asked Mr. Rikhoff to thank the volunteers of the Human Rights Support System on his behalf. Mr. Rikhoff said that the Human Rights Program was a partner in responding to the issue rather than a leader. He gave credit to other individuals and organizations in the field of human rights for their leadership, and noted that many of those individuals were present at the meeting. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 5 Work Session Mr. Meisner hoped the education campaign was not a one-time "splash" and that it would be an ongoing effort, both budgetarily and in the commission's work plan. He concurred with Mayor Torrey's remarks about the need for an emphasis on children. Responding to remarks made by Mayor Torrey and Ms. Taylor, Mr. Meisner said that the City should be cautious about the way in approached offenders because, to the extent one says to an offender, "1 understand where you come from," it made it all the more difficult for those who were victims to come forward and seek help. Mr. Meisner emphasized the importance of prosecution and sanctions to the prevention of hate crimes. Mr. Meisner moved, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, to approve the amendments to the Human Rights Commission's fiscal year 2000 Work Plan. Ms. Taylor said that the most difficult prejudices to overcome were those one was not ashamed of. She thought that was why prejudice against sexual orientation was so difficult to overcome. Ms. Taylor believed that people were unashamedly prejudiced against the "mall rats." The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. Mr. Meisner moved, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, to authorize the expenditure of up to $10,000 from the contingency fund for a hate crimes awareness campaign. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. Mayor Torrey thanked the commission, staff, and others involved in the coalition. B. Work Session on Police/Fire Stations Task Force Mr. Johnson indicated that the motions related to the item tabled from a council meeting in December would be brought back at a later time. Jim Carlson, Assistant City Manager, reported that the Police/Fire Stations Task Force had met twice. He referred the council to the time line and general work program included in the meeting packet. He also noted the inclusion of a proposal for public involvement in the packet. Mr. Meisner moved, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, to confirm the formation, charge, and time line for the Police/Fire Stations Task Force and to receive a recommendation from the task force by February 28, 2000. Ms. Taylor did not support the motion as she was not prepared to move the police out of City Hall at this time. She did not think the community was ready to make a decision about paying for the move at this time and believed the council was acting too fast. Ms. Taylor pointed out that the voters would also be asked to support the schools with more money in May. She believed that there were other ways to address the problem, such as moving the Fire Station and expanding the Police Department into that space. She said that any move from City Hall should be prefaced by years of planning, and the community should see the need for the move. Mr. Rayor clarified that the motion was not related to the sale of City Hall. Mr. Johnson agreed. Mr. Rayor asked if the task force was charged with developing a funding strategy. Mr. Johnson responded that the task MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 6 Work Session force was charged with examining the square footage requirements of the facilities and the cost was related to that; however, it was not in the task force's charge to come up with a funding strategy. Mr. Rayor said that he believed another site was needed for both the Fire and Police departments. That site should be downtown, and the voters should be given an opportunity to vote on the two facilities separately. He clarified that the task force would report back to the council. Mr. Johnson said yes. Mr. Fart supported the task force. He suggested that the City document current working spaces with video and show the video to community groups. Mayor Torrey noted that such a video was being produced. Mayor Torrey read a letter regarding the air conditions in the Police Department from a Records employee that was accompanied by a sample of the debris put out by the HVAC (Heating, Ventilation, & Air Conditioning) system. Mr. Meisner supported the motion although he was not committed to support the task force's recom- mendations. He said that the condition of the City's facilities, particularly City Hall, was a long-time concern but it had been ignored by past councils and things had gotten worse. The space was inadequate and a seismic retrofit would reduce the space available further. The motion passed, 7:1; Ms. Taylor voting no. Mr. Meisner moved, seconded by Ms. Nathanson, to approve the public involvement plan for the Police/Fire Stations Task Force. Responding to a question from Mr. Rayor regarding the public involvement process, Mr. Johnson said that staff sought legal advice as to whether its ballot measure tabloids represented advocacy of the ballot. He said that staff would try to think of other ways of communicating. Mr. Rayor stressed the importance of keeping City Hall separate as an issue. Mr. Kelly said that within the compressed time frame, it was important to have a forum before a proposal was developed. He noted the upcoming forum scheduled at Campbell Senior Center on January 29. Mr. Kelly suggested a question and answer forum prior to the election. Mr. Johnson said that the council could run the forums as advocates of the measure. Ms. Taylor wanted public involvement but did not want the City to advocate for a measure. Mr. Johnson said that the City could not advocate for a measure by law. Ms. Taylor believed that the public information campaign run for the public safety levy had advocated for the measure, and the materials produced had been paid for by public funds. Mr. Johnson said that the County received advice to the contrary from its legal counsel. Mr. Pap~ said there was a need for extensive public education about the issue. He said that once people understand the nature of the problem, they will see it as something to be solved. Ms. Nathanson said that the City had done an excellent job in the past of producing informational materials related to City-sponsored measures without advocating for them. She found them to be useful public information, and did not want to leave staff with the impression the council was unhappy with them or the purpose they served. MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 7 Work Session Mayor Torrey said he would work to ensure that the City did not advocate for the measure, but he intended to advocate for it personally. The motion passed unanimously, 8:0. C.Election of Officers The council briefly discussed the upcoming election of officers. By head nods, councilors indicated support for Mr. Lee for the position of president. All councilors but Mr. Pap~ indicated support for Ms. Taylor as vice president. Responding to a question from Mr. Pap~, Mr. Kelly indicated he was not prepared to serve as vice president at this point. The meeting adjourned at 7:30 p.m. Respectfully submitted, James R. Johnson City Manager (Recorded by Kimberly Young) MINUTES--Eugene City Council January 24, 2000 Page 8 Work Session