PETITION RESULTS INTEND TO BE SHARED AT THE JANUARY 25 CITY COUNCIL MEETING

"City Council voted 8-4 on Dec. 21 to give initial approval to form a Commission on Human Affairs and Racial Conciliation (originally Charleston’s Special Commission on Equity, Inclusion and Racial Conciliation). If given FINAL APPROVAL at the Jan. 25 council meeting, the new commission would carry on the work done by a panel of a similar name formed on a temporary basis in June 2020, become permanent and would have the goal of promoting “equity, inclusion, and racial conciliation through presentations regarding all forms of institutional and community discrimination.”

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The commission was originally tasked with examining the city’s role in policing, economic development, health care, environmental management, housing, transportation, education, and history and culture, then devising various recommendations for addressing acknowledged problems.

In August and September 2021, City Council voted against formally “receiving” the report and making the commission a permanent fixture.

Council rejected the report and commission earlier this year because of concerns surrounding three proposals within the group’s 545-page report.

The recommendations in the report are meant as a starting point of a process likely to take a while, said council member William Dudley Gregorie. The goal is to root out institutional inequities and transform Charleston’s government into one that is “actively anti-racist.”

The city of Charleston has a number of permanent commissions tasked with reviewing policy proposals and making recommendations to council. They are made up of a combination of council members and city residents appointed by the mayor or council members."

SOURCES:

https://www.counton2.com/news/local-news/charleston-county-news/charleston-city-council-tables-vote-to-approve-human-affairs-and-racial-conciliation-commission/

https://www.postandcourier.com/news/charleston-council-votes-to-revive-racial-reconciliation-commission/article_336fc7a8-61d4-11ec-8e60-c71bae46b9af.html

https://www.postandcourier.com/news/charlestons-racial-conciliation-commission-makes-its-recommendations/article_c4a5c7c8-f559-11eb-8ab2-af70a6ec52f5.html