PETITION TO FULLY FUND AND STAFF THE BLACK HAWK COUNTY / WATERLOO HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION

TO: The Waterloo City Council, the Black Hawk County Board of Supervisors, and Appointed Leadership

FROM: The Undersigned Residents, Community Advocates, and Stakeholders of Black Hawk County and Waterloo, Iowa

Statement of Purpose

We, the community members of Waterloo and greater Black Hawk County, stand together to demand the immediate and full restoration of the Waterloo Human Rights Commission's operational capacity.

A fully functioning Human Rights Commission is not a luxury—it is a legal, moral, and civic necessity. Currently, the structural vacancies within the Commission severely limit its ability to investigate discrimination, protect vulnerable populations, and advocate for civil rights. To rectify this and ensure the protections guaranteed under local and state laws are upheld, we petition local government leadership to immediately authorize, fund, and fill three critical, distinct positions:

Human Rights Executive Director
Lead Secretary
Dedicated Investigator 

Why This Matters to Wards Three, Four, and All of Black Hawk County

Civil rights protections must be proactive, accessible, and robust. Without proper staffing, intake processes are delayed, critical investigations languish, and community outreach is non-existent. A stalled commission disproportionately impacts historically underserved neighborhoods, working-class families, and individuals facing systemic barriers in housing, employment, and public accommodations.

Investing in these three core roles will directly restore public trust and operational integrity:

1. Human Rights Executive Director: Needed to provide strategic vision, rebuild community coalitions, oversee compliance, and serve as a public champion for equity and civil rights enforcement across the municipality and county.
2. Lead Secretary: Needed to manage the heavy administrative caseload, ensure meticulous record-keeping, field initial intake inquiries from residents in crisis, and maintain organizational consistency.
3. Dedicated Investigator: Needed to conduct objective, thorough, and timely investigations into complaints of discrimination. Justice delayed is justice denied; a specialized investigator ensures compliance, gathers evidence impartially, and clears existing backlogs.

Our Demand

We respectfully request that the City of Waterloo and Black Hawk County jointly prioritize human rights infrastructure in the current fiscal budget. We call for an immediate commitment to post these vacancies, allocate competitive funding for these specialized roles, and empower the Human Rights Commission to fully execute its legal mandates.

 

 

 

 

Community Signatures

By signing below, we voice our collective commitment to accountability, systematic fairness, and a fully functional Human Rights Commission.