Loading...
HomeMy WebLinkAbout2016-05-09 HRC Minutes HUMAN RIGHTS COMMISSION of the City of Palm Springs Minutes from the May 9, 2016 Regular Meeting COMMISSIONERS Present at this Meeting Present FY Year-to-Date FY 2015-16 Excused Absences FY 2015-16 Unexcused Absences Jilska Chandrasena Denise Chappell Janel Hunt Jack Newby Wes Rankins Suzanne Severin Deborah Sutton-Weiss Angelina Pinkney, Student Rep Kelli Martin, Student rep. X X 0 X X X X 0 0 9 9 8 10 10 10 7 4 0 1 1 2 0 0 0 3 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 The above roll call record is based on all meeting Minutes from July 13, 2015 thru May 9, 2016 1. Chair Newby called the meeting to order at 3:00 p.m. 2. Commissioner Severin led the flag salute. 3. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss recited the Mission Statement. 4. Commissioners Present: Newby, Chappell, Rankins, Severin, Sutton-Weiss, Chandrasena. Commissioners Absent: Hunt, excused Student Representatives Angelina Pinkney and Kelli Martin were also absent. 5. POSTING OF THE AGENDA: The agenda was posted in accordance with the Brown Act on or before 4:00 p.m., on Thursday, May 5, 2016. 6. PUBLIC COMMENTS: Three (3) minutes per speaker:  Richard Noble noted that he would like the HRC to support the City of Palm Springs in a making a resolution in support of the Equality Act. He distributed the wording of a proposed resolution to the Commissioners. He also spoke in favor of the HRC endorsing the designation of October 10th as Indigenous Peoples’ Day. Mr. Noble asked that both resolutions be put on the agenda for the HRC’s June meeting. 7. GUEST SPEAKERS: Commissioner Chandrasena introduced Julia Sauter and Jesus Palominos to speak on the topic of ableism. Ms. Sauter is a volunteer and substitute teacher at the Braille Institute. She has mild spastic cerebral palsy and is an advocate for people with disabilities. She graduated summa cum laude from Mount St. Mary and has a MA in ethics. Mr. Palomino, also a volunteer at the Braille Institute, holds a MA in Music from the Cal State Fullerton. Mr. Palomino was born with retinitis pigmentosa. Mr. Palomino was in special education during elementary school but later was encouraged to pursue further education. Both Ms. Sauter and Mr. Palomino want to broaden the public’s awareness of the negative effects of ableism.  Ms. Sauter noted that ableism is the institutionalized discrimination against those with disabilities. She thanked her family, friends and mentors for their encouragement and support. Ms. Sauter described her disability and its symptoms. Noted that most people with disabilities do their best to live their lives as independently as possible. The skills, talents and intelligence of people with disabilities are often overlooked and there is a lack of resources for people with disabilities across the nation and around the world that often creates roadblocks to their reaching their full potential. Ableism tends to water down the goals and intent of the ADA. Called on the HRC and others with Human Rights Commission Minutes Page 2 of 5 Meeting of March 14, 2016 2 spheres of influence to support programs and opportunities for people with disabilities. Ms. Sauter advocates that the HRC, the City and Valley businesses can do two important things to assist the disabled in overcoming ableism - the first is education and the second is employment. Ms. Sauter, on behalf of herself and Mr. Palomino, urged the HRC to work with the City to designate a certain number of City jobs for the disabled and encouraged the HRC to sponsor additional education and outreach to community businesses where the disabled might be gainfully employed. She cited the success of Pizza Hut, Walgreen’s and the Hilton Hotel chain in hiring disabled persons. Commissioner Severin thanked Ms. Sauter for her educational comments and the challenge to raise the bar on disabled opportunities. Commissioner Rankins thanked Ms. Sauter and asked for resources/literature on ableism for the Commission to distribute. She will provide some resources to the Commission.  Mr. Palomino described his background and feels that his story can be helpful in understanding ableism. He described that it wasn’t until he was 19 that a counselor at the Braille Institute recommended that he attend college. He overcame early educational discrimination and the stigma of disability to become someone who is a helper himself. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss asked Mr. Palomino if he believed that improvements had been made in the educational system since his childhood. He stated that he has not seen much progress in the way disabled students are treated. 8. APPROVAL OF THE MINUTES FROM THE APRIL 11, 2016 MEETINGS: Commissioner Severin said regarding the enclosures for the May meeting, the reference to the Dec. 16, 2016 staff report should read 2015. The minutes were approved 6-0 following a motion by Commissioner Sutton-Weiss and second by Commissioner Chappell. (Commissioner Hunt was absent.) 9. ITEMS FOR DISCUSSION / AND OR VOTE: 9.A Election of a Vice Chair to serve the remainder of the current fiscal year. Lee Bonno noted that the next election for Chair/Vice Chair shall take place at the July 13, 2016 meeting. Both Commissioners Rankins (nominated by Commissioner Sutton-Weiss and seconded by Chair Newby) and Severin (nominated by Commissioner Chandrasena and seconded by Commissioner Chappell) were nominated and both received an equal number of votes for a tie. Chair Newby and Commissioners Sutton-Weiss ad Rankins voted for Commissioner Rankins. Commissioners Chandrasena, Chappell and Severin voted for Commissioner Severin. No further action was taken at this time until Ms. Bonno consulted with City Clerk, Jay Thompson. 9.B Harvey Milk Diversity Breakfast May 20th – Commissioner Severin has secured a table for 10. Commissioners who will attend are: Sutton-Weiss, Newby, Rankins, Chappell, Severin and staff liaison Ms. Bonno. Chair Newby suggested that the extra seats go back to the breakfast organizers for seating others who might not otherwise be able to attend. Commissioner Rankins recommended that the HRC check with the Mayor’s Office first to see if City representatives are in need of seats before the five seats are released to the organizers. Chair Newby clarified that the Mayor’s Office would be contacted first and then the organizers. 9.C Medical Cannabis Dispensaries in Palm Springs. In the packet of materials prepared for this meeting, Ms. Bonno provided a comprehensive overview of information regarding the City’s regulations as well as the approval process for siting dispensaries in response to Commissioner Chandrasena’s concerns that the dispensaries are often located where vulnerable populations congregate. Commissioner Chandrasena asked that the topic be carried forward for discussion at the fall planning retreat. Commissioner Rankins expressed concerns that this issue is not within the purview of the HRC and is leery of any violation of the civil rights of those who have received medical marijuana cards. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss, Chair Newby and Commissioner Severin concurred with Commissioner Rankins and Commissioner Chappell noted that the materials provided demonstrated a comprehensive process. 9.D Resolution supporting the Equality Act – Continued to June 13, 2016. Ms. Bonno noted that Councilmember Kors has been working on a resolution with the Human Rights Campaign that would come before the HRC in June and then go to the City Council also in June, which is Pride month. Human Rights Commission Minutes Page 3 of 5 Meeting of March 14, 2016 3 9.E Appointment of a Commissioner to serve on the Transgender Community Coalition Planning Committee. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss is already serving on the Coalition. In order to ratify her appointment by the HRC, Chair Newby called for a motion to approve Commissioner Sutton-Weiss’ appointment. The motion was made by Commissioner Rankins and seconded by Commissioner Chappell. The motion was carried 6-0. (Commissioner Hunt absent.) 9.F HRC/Palm Springs Library Event confirmed for Wednesday, Oct. 12, from 6:30 to 7:45 p.m. The title of the program and details (movie/speaker) are needed by Aug. 9. Possible request for funding – Commissioner Severin recommended a 53-minute film titled, “The Home Stretch” which follows three homeless teens who fight to stay in school, graduate and build a future. The film deals with the struggles they face. Commissioner Severin said she has spoken to Arlene Rosenthal from the Well in the Desert and she is interested in partnering with the Commission on this. There is a cost of $259 to rent the movie. The event will be noted in the Library’s program. Commissioner Rankins further recommended doing some partnering with the City’s Task Force on Homelessness and perhaps split the cost of the film. Commissioner Severin indicated that she could find people who could donate the funds to show the film. A motion was made by Commissioner Sutton-Weiss to go with Commissioner’s Severin’s recommendation on the film. Following a seconded by Commissioner Chappell, the motion was approved 6-0. (Commissioner Hunt absent.) 9.G Commission’s annual report – Chair Newby distributed a fiscal year draft of the HRC Annual Report to the Commissioners. Chair Newby noted with double asterisks the accomplishments of the Commission that the Commission had wanted to address. He asked the Commissioners to send their edits/comments to Ms. Bonno so that they can be incorporated into the report. Commissioner Severin noted that there were two cases that were brought for mediation – one was resolved through facilitation and the other did not move forward to the mediation process because one of the parties did not respond. 9.H Commissioner Chandrasena’s recommendation that the HRC recognize three Girl Scouts who received Gold Awards. They are: Kayla Carrera – Computer Science Education: Introduced Computer Coding workshop at Raymond Cree Middle School Mihiri Chandrasena – Collaborated with INCIGHT adding golf as an Adaptive Sport to the CV Adaptive Sports Festival Jazmin Monrroy – Introduced a My Life, My Skills class to the Boys & Girls Club of Palm Springs Ms. Bonno asked Commissioner Chandrasena if she wanted these Girl Scouts recognized at the Community Service Award Ceremony in February or if she intended for some recognition to come sooner. Chair Newby asked Commissioner Chandrasena for clarification. She responded that providing them with a certificate at a HRC meeting would be a positive and supportive measure. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss stated that acknowledging the three at the Community Service Awards would be a more powerful statement. Commissioner Severin pointed out that waiting until February was a downside. She said she supports acknowledging people throughout the year. Commissioner Rankins stated that the purpose of the annual Community Service Awards is to acknowledge people and indicated that he felt that these three young women would be good candidates for the Community Service Awards nomination process. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss and Chappell agreed with Commissioner Rankins and, sensing a consensus, Chair Newby recommended that this recognition should be part of the Community Service Awards Committee’s consideration for the February 2017 awards. 9.I Task Force Reports:  Homeless Committee – Commissioner Severin noted several key issues from the April 14th meeting of the Task Force: o Location for a comprehensive triage services hub – money is in the City’s budget, but the location is still to be determined o Mental health workers are developing a rapport with the homeless and creating an independent comprehensive data base on the demographics of the homeless Human Rights Commission Minutes Page 4 of 5 Meeting of March 14, 2016 4 o Veterans continue to receive shelter in Riverside County – In 2015, 400 veterans received housing and the effort continues o Police are responding to reports of homeless camps and are trying to respond quickly o Noted that Riverside County mental health professionals report that it takes approximately 70 requests before a homeless person asks for help o Councilmember Kors has been researching how other cities handle the issue of access to public restroom facilities o The 4th annual Coachella Valley free medical, dental and optical clinic, sponsored by Golden Voice and California Care Force, was held in April and it was very well attended by those in need of no-cost medical attention o The Task Force is working with the Well in the Desert and the Workforce Development Center in Indio to have a mobile van for those homeless who are job ready and want to go back to work – the van supplies assistance in getting resumes together and locating documentation that they are going to need to get back to work and to do some training.  Ethics and Transparency Task Force – Chair Newby reported that he was unable to attend the last meeting of the Task Force. However, he did report that there are several recommendations being brought forward to the City Council from the various sub-committees of the Task Force. One issue that was discussed was how various City committees are subject to the Brown Act. Chair Newby notes that if all the recommendations suggested by the Task Force were to be implemented it would be a time consuming and expensive project. However, he said there are some incremental steps that can be made that will open up the process more to the community. Some of the ideas that are being discussed might require a Charter Amendment that would be put to the public for a vote.  Logo Committee – Commissioner Severin said that a new HRC banner is being produced by Signs By Tomorrow at a cost of $150. She will bring the banner to the next HRC meeting. There is a balance of $350 for logo materials that should be spent prior to the end of the fiscal year. Commissioner Severin indicated that she had priced note pads, magnets and pens. She recommends ordering as many as possible at this time with the remaining funds. Commissioner Sutton-Weiss asked about ordering shirts for the Commissioners with the new logo. Commissioner Severin indicated that if the Commissioners want t-shirts that would cost roughly $20 each and polo shirts would run about $35 a piece. Commissioner Severin’s recommendation is that the HRC get new shirts when the new budget is in place or that Commissioners purchase their own shirts and the remaining funds this fiscal year be used for promotional items. Commissioner Rankins made a motion for Commissioner Severin to spend the remaining funds in the budget on promotional materials with the new logo. The note pads, magnets and pens will carry the new logo and the website address. Commissioner Rankins’ motion and seconded by Commissioner Sutton-Weiss and approved 6-0. (Commissioner Hunt was absent.) Commissioner Rankins asked about a logo launch party and after some discussion it was the consensus of the group that any such party could be held in conjunction with a larger event (Pride parade, etc.) and after the press release has been issued. Ms. Bonno suggested it be discussed at the fall planning retreat. Chair Newby asked for a copy of the new logo to add to the Commission’s Annual Report. 9.J Attendance at the Desert Highland Gateway Estates meetings – Commissioners Chandrasena and Chappell will attend the May 10th meeting. 9.K Public Comment from the Commission at City Council Meetings. Ms. Bonno suggested that a representative of the Commission speak at the next City Council meeting regarding the HRC’s request for an additional $500 for the Commission’s 2016-2017 budget. Chair Newby will prepare a letter to the Council requesting the additional monies and will be present at the meeting. Other Commissioners indicated that they will make an effort to attend. 9.L Commission’s tentative calendar: JUNE 2016: LGBT Issues Human Rights Meeting of Ma J 10. STUDE 11. COMM  C NOTE: Lee B motion and t another nom Commissione as Vice Cha Commissione 12. STAFF C Band of Cah forward. Cou noted that P Index. NOTE: Staff meeting. 13. AGENDA  Annual  Task F  Attenda  Attenda  Resolu  Packet 14. ADJOUR Commission M rch 14, 2016 JULY 2016: ENT COMME MISSIONERS Commissione Palomino to to what able Bonno noted t the item can mination that er Rankins an air and the er Rankins ab COMMENTS: huilla Indians ncilmember K Palm Springs will look into A ITEMS FOR l Report Force Reports ance at Dese ance at City C ution on the E t to include th RNMENT: The Minutes Gue Hom Coo Ong ENTS – There COMMENTS er Rankins tha o speak befor eism is and ho that the City C be brought u can get mo nd she withd motion was bstaining and Noted that C s regarding th Kors will let st is once aga o whether or R THE JUNE s ert Highlands Council quality Act e City’s nond e meeting was est Speaker(s mecoming ordinated by: going busines e were none. S: anked Commi re the Commis ow it affects t Clerk respond up again whe ore votes. C rew her nam seconded Commission Councilmemb he proposed taff know whe ain being incl not the HRC 13, 2016 HRC neighborhood discrimination s adjourned a Re Ter Vo Lee Sta Dir 5 s): Annette Pa Commissione ss and orientin issioner Chan ssion. He ind the lives of pe ded regarding en all Commi ommissioner e. Chair New by Commiss er Hunt abse ber Kors had indigenous en to put this uded in the has a Coun C MEETING: d meetings policy in hirin at 4:31 p.m. spectfully sub rry Towne lunteer, Office e A. Bonno aff Human Rig rector of Neig aterson, Exec er Sutton-We ng new Comm ndrasena for icated that th eople with dis g the tie vote ssioners are Severin sai wby moved to sioner Sutton nt. been in com peoples day topic on the Human Righ ncilmember L ng bmitted, e of Neighbor ghts Commiss hborhood & C cutive Directo eiss missioners inviting Julia eir presentati sabilities. for Vice Chai present or h id she would o nominate C n-Weiss. The munication w and that co Commission’ hts Campaign iaison and re rhood & Com sion Liaison Community R Pa or, Joshua Sauter and Je ions opened h ir. A tie vote i have the Cha d like to con Commissioner e vote was with the Agua onversation is ’s agenda. Sh n’s Municipal eport back at mmunity Relat Relations age 5 of 5 esus his eyes s a failed air accept ncede to r Rankins 5-0 with Caliente s moving he further Equality the next ions