An Arlington group is drafting ideas for city equity measures. They need your help.
An Arlington group tasked with recommending solutions to make the city more equitable is holding its next public session at 6 p.m. Thursday.
City leaders created the Unity Council to explore systemic barriers facing marginalized groups and to form short- and long-term suggestions for eliminating them. The group, composed of more than two dozen representatives from community groups, churches and businesses, is tasked with presenting its recommendations to the City Council in February.
“We can’t describe ourselves as an American dream city if the American dream is not accessible to everyday people,” said Jason Shelton, Unity Council chair. “That’s a key tenet of this project.”
Shelton, who also directs UT Arlington’s Center for African American Studies, has led the group through research of local, state and federal data to understand the city’s demographics. He also split the group into five subcommittees to concentrate on issues including policing, health and wellness, economic development, housing and education and workforce development.
“The data tells us where we’ve been, where we are and it can suggest where we’re going,” Shelton said. “We can’t do any project like this and just let it be driven solely by our opinions.”
Analyses of city, state and federal data presented to the Council in August found that the city is the 11th most diverse in the U.S. However, communities of color are less likely to have health insurance or earn more than their white counterparts and are more likely to experience difficulty paying rent. The presentation also pointed to a disparity study that found the city has struggled to contract minority- and women-owned businesses for city projects.
However, as the Council nears its February due date, it has turned to public forums, interviews with residents and focus groups to hear more about residents’ experiences. Eight people called into the group’s first town hall Nov. 19. Prepared questions for callers asked for their reactions to George Floyd’s May 25 killing in Minneapolis and whether racism is a problem in Arlington, but people could discuss any issues or ideas they had.
Cyndi Golden, who chairs the Unity Council’s Health and Wellness Subcommittee, said she was disappointed at turnout for the first town hall, though she said holding virtual events may discourage some from calling.
“When you go to a town hall, you’re more inspired to speak because others are standing up speaking. It might be your neighbor or someone you know,” Golden said. “Virtually, you don’t feel that need to do that.”
Shelton said in an email that at least 50 people watched the town hall online, and he has received positive feedback since the first event.
“Of course, in a perfect world there would be no such thing as COVID-19 and our town hall would have taken place in a large auditorium and been attended by hundreds of people,” he wrote. “But our virtual discussion was vibrant, far-reaching, and permitted members of our community to speak.”
‘All of us want the same thing’
The public input sessions comprise the hardest aspect of the Unity Council’s work, said Arely Cure, chairperson for the Education and Workforce Development Subcommittee.
“We haven’t really had the harsh, uncomfortable topic about racism and how that plays a key in this inequity factor,” Cure said.
Subcommittees have been tasked with conducting research, determining focus areas within the Unity Council’s scope, and forming questions to ask interviewees in one-on-one sessions and in several focus groups. However, some Council members said they have had several difficult conversations in order to better understand other subcommittee members’ viewpoints.
Pastor Ronnie Goines, who leads Koinonia Christian Church and chairs the Policing Subcommittee, said his group has had disagreements as they grapple with subjects including officers’ mental health, community trauma as a result of law enforcement and hiring a more diverse police force. The candid meetings, he said, have been healthy for the group, which regularly consults with Arlington Police.
“What we realize is all of us want the same thing, and that’s a better society, a better city. No one is comfortable with how divided our country is and how that’s had a way of seeping into our city,” Goines said.
City Council voted unanimously in June to address inequity by forming the Unity Council as global protests surrounding Floyd’s killing in Minneapolis and demanding police reform continued. Leaders have acknowledged the Unity Council’s formation as a “step,” but not the last of their efforts.
“We’re not expecting to have the silver bullet, but we are expecting to begin initial discussions of exploring these issues to make sure that as our city grows and as we become more diverse,” Shelton said.
Unity Council meetings and town halls are streamed online and aired on AT&T U-verse Channel 99 and Spectrum Channels 16 and 15.1. People interested in providing feedback on the Unity Council or speaking during a meeting can email mailto: unitycouncil@arlingtontx.gov.
