Special Commission on Equity, Inclusion and Racial Conciliation discuss draft report

The Special Commission on Equity, Inclusion and Racial Conciliation met on Wednesday, August 4 to discuss their draft report, which includes 125 recommendations on ways to promote racial justice and racial equity in the city of Charleston.

The commission was created last summer to review city policies, practices, budgets and other matters related to addressing racism and racial inequities. Councilmembers William Dudley Gregorie and Jason Sakran served as co-chairs of the commission, which also included Councilmembers Carol Jackson, Marie Delcioppo, Ross Appel and Keith Waring.

The recommendations brought forward were created by a diverse group of 49 stakeholders, experts and volunteers who served on seven subcommittees: Housing and Mobility chaired by Tracy Doran, Economic Empowerment chaired by Alvin T. Johnson, Jr., Health Disparities and Environmental Justice chaired by Dr. Kimberly Butler Willis, Criminal Justice Reform chaired by Jerome Harris, Youth and Education chaired by Crystal Robinson Rouse, History and Culture chaired by Dr. Felice Knight and Internal Review chaired by Daron Lee Calhoun, II.

In terms of next steps, Commission Co-Chairs Councilmembers Gregorie and Sakran have laid out a clear, three-part process:

(1)    The Commission will vote to forward the SCEIRC report to Mayor Tecklenburg and Charleston City Council.

(2)   Each of the report’s 125 recommendations will be sent to the appropriate committees of City Council for further vetting and review by committee members, citizens, commission members and city attorneys.

(3)   After the vetting and review process for each individual recommendation is complete, the recommendation will be sent to full City Council for final consideration.

The draft report can be viewed here.