HomeMy WebLinkAboutItem B: Joint Meeting with Human Rights Commission
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Work Session: Joint Meeting with the Human Rights Commission
Meeting Date: March 11, 2009 Agenda Item Number: B
Department: Central Services/City Manager’s Office Staff Contact: Raquel Wells
www.eugene-or.gov Contact Telephone Number: 682-5177
ISSUE STATEMENT
This work session is being held to review the Human Rights Commission, its work plan, and the work
plans of its standing committees. The commission will provide a brief update on its accomplishments of
FY07/08 and will highlight key work items for FY10 and FY11. The commission also plans to identify
several emerging issues for discussion at the meeting. The City Council will be asked to review and
approve the work plan.
BACKGROUND
The City Council and the Human Rights Commission (HRC) hold a meeting to review the work of the
commission and discuss human rights issues in the community. The last meeting was held on
September 11, 2006. At that time, the City Council approved an 18-month work plan.
Over the past 18 months, the Human Rights Commission has gone through several changes. First,
during the fall of 2007, the long-time program manager took another position at the University of
Oregon. At the manager’s request, the City Manager reviewed the Human Rights program and staff for a
six-month period in the beginning of 2008. Also, during this time, several commission members with a
long-term history on the commission ended their terms, leaving the new commissioners to complete
projects that previous members created. In addition, another major change in staff occurred in the spring
of 2008, which left only one full-time staff member, impacting the program’s capacity. However, with
the help of a completed assessment and the remaining commissioners, the new commissioners quickly
jumped onboard and took ownership of the work laid out for them. This winter over 30 community
members and City staff took part in a hiring process and in February 2009, the City Manager’s Office
was successful in hiring the new Human Rights Commission Analyst to oversee and support the
commission’s work plan and future endeavors.
The commissioners are asking the City Council to consider the approval of a 24-month work plan that
will begin July 1, 2009, and carry the commission through fiscal year 2011.
RELATED CITY POLICIES
The Eugene Human Rights Commission (HRC) and four standing committees of the commission were
established by Ordinance 19732 in 1990. The ordinance was updated in 2002.
Z:\CMO\2009 Council Agendas\M090311\S090301B.doc
The Human Rights Commission coordinates efforts and has oversight responsibility for the standing
committees of the commission. The commission has 15 members, 14 appointed by the City Council and
one member of the City Council. The four standing committees are the Agenda Committee, Education
and Outreach Committee, Accessibility Committee, and Advocate Response Team.
The Agenda Committee is composed of the commission’s elected officers. The other committees are
comprised of a mixture of commissioners and community members. Each commissioner is a member of
at least one standing committee, is an advocate with the Human Rights Support System, and/or serves as
the commission’s representative to a stakeholder partner group.
The commission’s enabling ordinance, adopted in December 1990, requires that it develop a work plan
for City Council review and approval. Work plans follow a July 1 – June 30 fiscal year (FY) schedule.
COUNCIL OPTIONS
The council may amend and/or approve the Human Rights Commission Goals and Work Plan for FY
2010/11.
CITY MANAGER’S RECOMMENDATION
The City Manager recommends approval of the Human Rights Commission Goals and Work Plan for
FY 2010/11.
SUGGESTED MOTION
Move to approve the Human Rights Commission Goals and Work Plan for FY 2010/11.
ATTACHMENTS
A. Human Rights Commission FY 2010/11 Work Plan
FOR MORE INFORMATION
Staff Contact: Raquel C. Wells
Telephone: 682-5177
Staff E-Mail: Raquel.c.wells@ci.eugene.or.us
Z:\CMO\2009 Council Agendas\M090311\S090301B.doc
ATTACHMENT A
City of Eugene
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION
FY 10/11 Work Plan
Proposal to be adopted March 11, 2009
833 Willamette Ave Eugene, Oregon 97401
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(541) 682-5177 FAX (541) 682-5221
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www.eugene-or.gov/hrc
Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION MEMBERS
Annette Leonard, Chair Twila Souers
Paloma Reza, Vice Chair Mary Otten
Jon Belcher Rosa Chavez
Councilor George Brown Mary Otten
Neil Van Steenbergen Mo Young
Misa Kawai Joo Keevan Labowitz
Linda Hamilton Christina Greening
Garcia
Ibrahim Hamide Nehali Davé
For more information on the Human Rights Commission, please contact:
Holly LeMasurier, Human Rights Commission Analyst
Phone: (541) 682-5177 E-Mail: Holly.k.LeMasurier@ci.eugene.or.us
www.eugene-or.gov/hrc
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Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
Background
The Eugene Human Rights Commission (HRC) and four standing committees of the commission were
established by Ordinance 19732 in 1990. The ordinance was updated in 2002.
The Human Rights Commission coordinates efforts and has oversight responsibility for the standing
committees of the commission. The Human Rights Commission has fifteen members, fourteen
appointed by the City Council and one member of the City Council. The four standing committees are
the Agenda Committee, Education and Outreach Committee, Accessibility Committee, and Advocate
Response Team.
The Agenda Committee is composed of the commission’s elected officers. The other committees are
comprised of a mixture of commissioners and community members. Each commissioner is a member
of at least one standing committee, is an advocate with the Human Rights Support System, and/or
serves as the commission’s representative to a stakeholder partner group.
The commission’s enabling ordinance, adopted in December of 1990, requires that it develop a work
plan for City Council review and approval. Work plans follow a July 1 – June 30 Fiscal Year (FY)
schedule. Major accomplishments over the past three years include:
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August 2006 - Human Rights Center Opens – 833 Willamette Street
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October 2006 – Choice in Mental Health Care as a Human Rights Conference – 350
Attendees – 30 Workshops
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November 2007 -
Eugene Human Rights Commission presented a symposium on "Bringing
Human Rights Home: Implementing International Human Rights in the United States" at the
University of Oregon Law Center. Keynote speakers were Chivy Sok, co-director of the
Women's Institute for Leadership Development for Human Rights in San Francisco, and
Carmen Urbina, Eugene HR Commission Chair.
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December 2008 -
over 30 groups and their allies formed a “Community Coalition for
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Advancement of Human Rights,” and organized a major event celebrating the 60 anniversary
of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights. Twenty-seven different groups tabled and
displayed posters depicting how their work supported human rights. From Oregon Toxics
Alliance to LGBTQ advocates from Basic Rights Oregon, from the mental health system
survivor group MindFreedom International to NextStep Recycling that contributes computers
to the poor at home and abroad, from immigrant rights advocates in CAUSA to labor rights
group ESSN/Jobs with Justice, these and other groups all created posters demonstrating the link
between their work and international human rights—most were making this link for the first
time.
Over the past 18 months, the Human Rights Commission went through several changes. First, during
the fall of 2007, the long-time program manager took another position at the University of Oregon. At
the manager’s request, the City Manager reviewed the Human Rights program and staff for a six-
month period in the beginning of 2008. Also, during this time several commission members with a
long-term history on the commission ended their terms, leaving the new commissioners to complete
projects that previous members created. In addition, another major change in staff occurred in the
spring of 2008, which left only one full-time staff member, impacting the program’s capacity.
February 28, 2009 draft - 3 -
Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
However, with the help of a completed assessment and the remaining members, the new
commissioners quickly jumped onboard and took ownership of the work laid out for them. This winter,
over thirty community members and City staff took part in a hiring process and in February 2009, the
City Manager’s Office was successful in hiring the new Human Rights Commission Analyst to oversee
and support the commission’s work plan and future endeavors.
The projects proposed for the commission’s FY10/11 Work Plan to begin July 1, 2009 are described in
more detail in the following sections. An annual report, documenting the group’s achievements and
challenges encountered in meeting its previous work plan commitments; will be provided at the end of
this fiscal year.
FY09 Work Plan Tasks and Procedural Objectives
Work Plan Focus
The Human Rights Commission’s work plan is focused into the following main components:
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Increase commission effectiveness, efficiency, and accountability in responding to, and aiding
in, the resolution of incidents of discrimination and harassment.
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Promoting relationships between the community and Human Rights Commission through
collaborative work on human rights issues.
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Enhance relationships and communications with the Eugene City Council, boards,
commissions and City staff.
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Works towards the adoption of a Human Rights City Framework.
Committee and Meeting Structures
There are four standing committees of the Human Rights Commission: the Agenda Committee,
Education and Outreach Committee, Accessibility Committee, and Advocate Response Team. These
committees are where the majority of the commission work plan action items are addressed.
Membership of these committees is as follows: the Agenda Committee is composed of the
commission’s standing committee chairs who are the elected officers, while other committees are
comprised of five human rights commissioners and five community members; each commissioner is a
member of at least one standing committee, is an advocate with the Human Rights Support System,
and/or serves as the commission’s representative to other stakeholder groups.
The Agenda Committee will focus primarily on setting the agenda for monthly commission meetings,
leading the annual commission retreat planning, leading the joint commission meetings planning,
designing commissioner training, responding to updates from the City Council on priorities, planning
for annual meetings with the Mayor, City Council and City executive team, and the development of a
communication plan for responding to community human rights incidents
The Education and Outreach Committee will focus primarily on the Human Rights City Framework
(with the subcommittee), the design and implementation of a survey instrument to understand
community needs and understanding of the Human Rights Commission, host and facilitate a
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Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
community forum, conduct an examination of the current stakeholder/partner community group liaison
roles and reporting process, and create a response process and principles for responding to emerging
issues such as hate crimes, discrimination, and inequity.
The Accessibility Committee will focus primarily on issues around responsibilities and efforts to
identify and assign the City’s ADA and Accessibility coordination including: pavement preservation
and accessibility; proposing changes to the dangerous dog ordinance and issues around taxi
accessibility; provide input into phase seven of the City’s ADA transition plan; support the City’s Bike
and Pedestrian Plan; act as advisory body on curb cuts, accessible signals, and intersections; expand
the availability of listening devices; make City documents available in many forms; and advise the
commission and City organization on potential City and community accessibility issues.
The Advocacy Response Team Committee will focus primarily on a review and redesign of the Human
Rights Support System; work with Citizen Review Board (CRB) and other City complaint processes to
clarify roles and needs; explore conflict resolution service models; the recruitment and training of
Advocate Response Team volunteers; and track and report human rights complaint trends in the city.
The full commission will meet a total of eleven times in a fiscal year, which will include work
sessions. Work sessions are scheduled periodically to provide opportunities for information-sharing
and discussion of human rights issues that do not necessarily require commission action. Dialogue on
issues the commission maintains a continuing interest in will be included every year. The commission
identified the following work sessions as those of high priority, and also reserves meeting time to
address emerging issues. The following work sessions are planned for FY10/11:
?Joint meeting with meeting with Sustainability Commission
?Joint meeting with Police Commission
?Forum with Mayor and City Council
?Forum with City executive team
?Three commissioner trainings
?Community Forum
?Human Rights Summit
?Support the Police Commission’s work on developing a possible Hate Crimes Conference
?Work sessions on annual reports and assessments
Procedural Objectives
The Commission experienced a significant transition of its membership and staff last year. The group
welcomed six new members and elected a new chair and vice-chair. Some specific procedural
objectives for FY10 are to:
???Support the leadership team with an appropriate level of responsibilities
???Maintain a highly qualified, dedicated and balanced membership
?Identify opportunities for team building, to establish positive working relationships and
facilitate group cohesiveness (annual process retreat)
?Continue outreach, information sharing, and collaboration with the community and other
commissions and boards
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Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
?Utilize the roles of commission liaisons to stay on track with other department and community
group goals, opportunities for collaboration, and emerging issues
As a result of the commission’s recent process of developing this work plan, the commission agreed to
address a series of procedural issues with suggestions for improvement. This work will take place in
conjunction with upcoming Agenda Committee meetings. One of the main objectives members shared
an interest in is to strengthen the Human Rights Commission’s relationship with the City Council and
City organization. - Suggested actions include: meeting with the City Manager on a semi-regular basis,
scheduling joint meetings close to the beginning of the fiscal year, and the creation of Memorandum of
Understandings with the City Manager’s office and a council liaison clarifying and defining the
collaborative partnership. A procedural issue of concern is the lack of follow-up to public comment.
Some suggestions for improvement include keeping better track of what is said during public comment
at the meetings, and contacting these public participants for further conversation.
Work Plan Outcomes
Increase Human Rights Commission effectiveness, efficiency and
accountability, in responding to and aiding in, the resolution of incidents of
OUTCOME 1.
discrimination and harassment.
In FY10/11, the commission will:
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Continue to meet the needs of community members who experience incidents of discrimination
and harassment.
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Review and strengthen the human rights support system (HRRS):
Develop a working definition of advocacy;
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Assess recruitment and training of new HRSS advocates;
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Review and improve the response and case management process;
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Create an on-going evaluation of the program;
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Develop a structure to respond to incidents of harassment and discrimination/bias; and
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Begin pilot implementation of any new designs.
o
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Work with Citizen Review Board (CRB) to clarify roles and responsibilities HRSS advocates
and the commission can fulfill, and processes for successful collaboration.
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Explore diverse conflict resolution approaches and tools for HRSS advocate training.
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Report human rights violations and complaint trends:
Develop system to track and report human rights trends in the City.
o
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Explore proactive and effective approaches to respond to emerging issues.
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Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
Promoting relationships between the community and Human Rights
OUTCOME 2.
Commission through collaborative work on human rights issues.
In FY10/11, the commission will work in the following areas:
Commission Training and Education
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Hold an annual retreat that addresses the following:
Skills and resource sharing
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Individualized growth plan development
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Commissioner’s self-care
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Accountability and commitments
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Working agreements
o
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Participate in a minimum of two trainings to increase commissioners skills and knowledge of
human rights advocacy approaches such as:
Helper vs. ally
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Effective conflict communication and dialogue
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Dis/Ability awareness
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Racism
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Power and privilege
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Community Engagement and Support
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Support the existing work of the subcommittees.
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Host/Facilitate a community forum on human rights topics.
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Examine current community partner liaison roles and reporting process.
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Create response plan for reporting and responding to hate crimes, discrimination, and inequity.
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Design and implement various methods to consistently and continually gain helpful knowledge
of community needs and identification of human rights issues in our community.
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Develop capacity and approaches to respond to emerging issues.
Enhance relationships and communications with the City of Eugene
OUTCOME 3.
Council, Boards, Commissions and staff.
In FY11/10, the Commission will work on:
City Engagement and Support
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Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) for council liaison
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Update on status of mental health resolution, hate crimes legislation,
council priority on race, council priority on homelessness
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Define Human Rights Commission relationship and roles
with Mayor & City Council
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with City executive team
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Human Rights Commission
FY10/11 Work Plan
with Police Commission
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with Sustainability Commission
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Develop Memorandum Of Understanding (MOU) for Human Rights Commission’s work with
other groups and staff
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Working with other relevant City boards and commissions as collaboration opportunities arise
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Support the City Diversity and Equity Strategic Plan implementation
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Respond to emerging issues
Work towards the implementation of a Human Rights Framework.
OUTCOME 4.
In FY10/11, the commission will:
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Clarify the scope and objectives of the previous “Human Rights City” efforts, perhaps through
compiling data showing the current status of human rights in our community and the need for
changes to the current ordinance;
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Review the process for a resolution or ordinance change in support of the adoption of a Human
Rights Framework;.
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Present the council with recommendations to implement this framework in our community;
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Work with community groups advocating for the adoption of a Human Rights Framework;
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Support a Human Rights Summit; and
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Work with the City organization to develop a strategy for integrating a human rights policy and
principles framework into the commission’s work and the organization’s work.
Conclusion
As outlined above, the tasks proposed for this year’s work plan are clearly aligned with the
commission’s role and objectives as described in its charter. The group continues to be forward
thinking in its work strategies and responsive to issues facing our community. The projects detailed in
this work plan are designed to ensure a thorough, deliberative review of important issues in our
community that require the attention of the Human Rights Commission and organization. New
projects, including integrating a human rights framework, working with the community to build
relationships and address needs, and helping the council and City organization address the human
rights concerns in our community, are all fundamental parts of this work plan. These new and ongoing
projects make for a full and ambitious work plan. However, the commission will accommodate work
plan changes as directed by the City Council or as necessary to respond to emerging community
concerns.
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