A proposal to create new citizen advisory groups on diversity and sustainability are moving forward after county commissioners last week discussed – sometimes testily – how they should be set up.
The groups, which will be called coalitions rather than committees, were requested by Chairman Mike Kelly and are intended to bring in opinions and expertise from the community.
Each group would have up to 15 members, appointed by Kelly pending approval from the rest of the commission.
Two new groups are being proposed
The sustainability coalition would be focused on environmental stewardship.
Members would be charged with raising awareness and assessing countywide efforts for sustainability, as well as looking for grants and coordinating with the Mid-America Regional Council’s Climate and Environment Council.
The diversity coalition would be composed of a variety of advocacy, law enforcement, faith-based and educational groups and would discuss diversity, equity and inclusion efforts and provide a resource for the county.
Both groups would have access to a staff support person. The county already has a sustainability program manager and could reclassify a human resources position for the diversity group, staff members said.
Commission rejects alternative for selecting group members
Commissioners held their discussion of the two groups during Thursday’s committee of the whole meeting.
Talk about the diversity group, in particular, became edgy at times, as Commissioner Charlotte O’Hara raised raising objections.
At one point, she brought up pronoun pins that have previously been provided to employees who want them, asking what the legal repercussions would be of rescinding them.
The pins did not require a commission vote because at $4,600 they were below the $100,000 threshold requiring one.
Kelly said, “The reason for the committee of the whole is to discuss (the new diversity and sustainability groups), and instead we’re trying to be intentionally cruel to a small group of people that want to be accepted in their own workplace.”
O’Hara also proposed the new group members be appointed by commission district, with two appointments for each commissioner and three for the chairman.
But other commissioners and Kelly prevailed, saying the chairman appointment and board confirmation fits with how other committees are drawn and would ensure a good mix of expert voices.
Commissioners go back and forth on ‘lived experience’
O’Hara said having members from different commission districts would provide diversity of thought.
“Being in a minority on this board I find that my voice and Commissioner Ashcraft’s voice gets lost to the majority on many occasions,” she said.
Kelly countered that the idea is to represent people who have historically been underrepresented because of their identity, background or disability.
“I really take umbrage with the idea that your disagreement on political issues is somehow equivalent to the lived experience of historical marginalized groups based on their identity or disability. Those are just not the same things,” he said.
Later O’Hara said she’d been a minority as a female general contractor in the 1980s and that her youngest daughter is of African and Korean descent.
O’Hara said,”I think the direction of this whole idea is just building bureaucracy, and we’re not going to accomplish anything.”
Commissioner Janeé Hanzlick said, “As a white woman I cannot begin to comprehend the experiences of other people who are Black and brown and transgender. I would never assume I know what their experiences are. That’s why I think a coalition like this is so important because I want to hear from those people.”
Next steps
In setting up the coalition, commissioners cautioned that they want to avoid duplication of the work of its already-existing internal groups on sustainability and diversity.
Commissioner Becky Fast said she would like to make sure there are no redundancies with the county Solid Waste Management Committee.
She also proposed the groups have an annual review.
The next step is for the staff to write a resolution to create the coalitions that will be discussed at a regular commission meeting.
Roxie Hammill is a freelance journalist who reports frequently for the Post and other Kansas City area publications. You can reach her at roxieham@gmail.com.
