Three key city leaders - Human Rights Director Dr. Love Jones, City Manager David Parrish and Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer Maria Hicks-Few - share community-wide efforts to achieve racial and social justice. Niketa Greene, the Chamber's vice president for leadership, diversity and inclusion, hosts.
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Today’s host is Niketa Greene, the Chamber’s VP of Leadership, Diversity, and Inclusion.
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00:57 - Niketa kicks off the episode with a warm welcome and introduction of her guests from the City of Greensboro! Today’s guests are Dr. Love Jones, the City’s Human Rights Director; Maria Hicks-Few, Chief Equity and Inclusion Officer; and David Parrish, the City Manager.
3:00 - This year has been a time of challenges, especially within the world of racial justice and inequity. Niketa asks her guests about their thoughts as the City of Greensboro reckoned with social and racial issues at the start of this summer. As parents, community members, and leaders, each shares their experiences and how they viewed the positives and concerns that came from the protests.
8:25 - Niketa asks what the first steps were in addressing these huge social issues, especially as each guest is a key City Government leader. Maria shares that internally, the City staff held a moment of silence, a Blackout Tuesday event, and marched in solidarity of Black Lives Matter. There were also internal conversations that addressed the hurt and confusion of the events, before branching out into the Employee Resource Groups to understand the full impact across the organization and implement action towards change.
11:00 - Dr. Jones shares about the Thrive GSO initiative, housed in the Human Rights Department, to address race and income disparity. The goal of Thrive GSO is to address the challenges that populations re-entering society post-incarceration face when trying to build a successful life. Their four-pronged approach addresses barriers in accessing housing, education, employment, and voting rights.
12:53 - David speaks to how the Greensboro Public Library has helped the community by removing access barriers like overdue book fees in order to prevent access issues for vulnerable populations who need library services and resources. These fines were unintentionally impacting lower income communities and people of color at a higher rate, so removing this barrier allows these populations to continue to access needed public resources.
15:45 - Niketa asks about the complex issue of police reform in Greensboro. David details some initiatives taken on by the new police chief, including changes to use-of-force policy in reaction to the George Floyd murder, as well as how suspects are publicly portrayed in the community.
18:08 - Dr. Jones explains what the RACE GSO initiative is and does for Greensboro. RACE stands for Recognizing And Considering the Experiences of Others, and encapsulates what the City is doing to tackle difficult social and racial issues, spread awareness of the City’s efforts, ensure the City staff feel valued and heard through difficult conversations, and give tools to department leaders to facilitate open, healthy, and healing discussion.
25:30 - Niketa asks David how these changes have been received by City staff and the community at large. He emphasizes on communication first, understanding where people are and what is needed, and building changes from there. But, change will always create discomfort for some while addressing the discomfort for others. Overall, the vast majority supports the direction that the City is moving in and the initiatives that the organization is employing.
31:35 - How can people learn more about the social and racial initiatives that the City is employing? Dr. Jones emphasizes active participation from the community on social media and invites community members to serve on or attend meetings for the three Human Rights Commissions. Maria directs listeners to the Office of Equity and Inclusion website to find out more information about the work they’re doing, to find the Heritage Calendar, and to watch the One Greensboro show. David encourages people to sign up for City communications and follow their social media for updates and information.
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Learn more about the RACE GSO initiative at https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/departments/human-rights/race-gso.
Learn more about the Greensboro Office of Equity and Inclusion at https://www.greensboro-nc.gov/departments/executive/office-of-equity-and-inclusion.
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Make sure to follow impact. The Boro on social media!
Facebook, Instagram and Twitter: @gsochamber
Visit the Chamber website at greensboro.org.
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