Resolution to Support the Town Of Brookline's participation in the Government Alliance On Race And Equity (GARE)

VOTED: That the Town Adopt the Following Resolution:

RESOLUTION TO SUPPORT THE TOWN OF BROOKLINE TO PARTICIPATE IN THE GOVERNMENT ALLIANCE ON RACE AND EQUITY (GARE)

WHEREAS, the Town of Brookline, Massachusetts (the Town) has a proclaimed public policy to improve diversity, inclusion, and community relations within its territory; and

WHEREAS, the Town has in its General By-laws many parts of the framework for achieving racial justice; and

WHEREAS, those are found in the goals of diversity and inclusion in the Town's General By-laws pertaining to the Office of Diversity, Inclusion and Community
Relations (ODICR) and the Commission for Diversity, Inclusion and Community Relations (CDICR), including in the powers, duties, responsibilities, and authorizations
given to CDICR and ODICR, along with the requirement that that all departments and agencies of the Town cooperate, share information and have a dialogue with CDICR and ODICR on relevant matters; and

WHEREAS, those powers, duties, responsibilities, and authorizations and requirements are found in Articles 3.14, 3.15, 5.5, and 10.2 of the Town's General By-laws, as most recently amended, along with the Equal Employment Opportunity policy promulgated by the Human Relations Department, and approved by CDICR September 21, 2016, approved by the Human Resources Board December 13, 2016, and by The Board of Selectmen February 7, 2017; and

WHEREAS, the Town is committed to work for racial equity in the Town's employment practices, business practices, allocation and handling of its services, and in its treatment of all people within its environs; and

WHEREAS, The Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE) is a national network of local governments working to achieve racial equity and advance opportunity for all. GARE works with government jurisdictions to assess the impact of public policies and procedures on racial equity and opportunity. The GARE approach is data driven and includes community engagement, setting and evaluating progress toward measurable goals and consultation with all levels of government employees, community members, and decision-makers; and

WHEREAS, in keeping with the above, through the work of the ODICR, the Town of Brookline has become a core member of the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE), a joint project of the Center for Social Inclusion (CSI) and the Haas Institute for a Fair and Inclusive Society, which is itself a non-profit organization that catalyzes community, government and other institutions to dismantle structural racial inequity and create equitable outcomes for all; and

WHEREAS, we believe the Town's goals and policies promoting racial justice will be augmented by maintaining the core membership benefits offered by GARE, and will be enhanced by contracts with the GARE-related Center for Social Inclusion (CSI) to give trainings to designated Town employees and relevant Town Departments, on topics deemed fit by ODICR and CDICR.

NOW THEREFORE, BE IT HEREBY RESOLVED, THAT TOWN MEETING URGES:

1. The Board of Selectmen and the Town Administrator, in conjunction with the ODICR, to support and facilitate participation by Town departments in the GARE implementation process. This includes but is not limited to using racial equity tools in a data driven process to integrate explicit consideration of racial equity into creating and evaluating Town policies, procedures, and department budgeting.

2. The Board of Selectmen, the Town Administrator, the School Committee and the Superintendent of Schools to work with the ODICR to identify one or more departments
(in addition to the ODICR itself) that will fully engage in GARE's implementation process during fiscal year 2017 - 2018.

3. The Town to allocate financial support and other resources to support successful implementation of the GARE implementation process, including enrollment of
department administrators and leaders in trainings provided by GARE, and that future budgets consider the funding requirements of this resolution.

4. That the Board of Selectmen and the Town Administrator, in conjunction with the ODICR, actively work to develop trust and accountability by seeking input and participation from the community in the GARE implementation process, prioritizing voices of residents of color, and that the Town's Chief Diversity Officer report on GARE progress in the CDICR monthly meeting and in a comprehensive annual report to the Board of Selectman and Town Meeting.