COUNCIL FOR DIVERSITY AND INCLUSION
Town hall meetings called to discuss racism
By TAMARA WILLIAMS , Esq . Office of the Public Defender and NEIL LYONS , Esq . Lurhsen Goldberg , LLC
No one knows when our actions
will have consequences far beyond what we initially anticipated . I doubt Derek Chauvin knew that the eight minutes and forty-six seconds he held his knee on the back of the neck of George Perry Floyd , Jr ., would shock the nation , and the world , as much as it did .
The May 25 , 2020 , video of Officer Derek Chauvin killing Mr . Floyd forced the nation to confront the issue of police brutality in minority communities . It also forced organizations large and small to make a reckoning . Statements were issued by governments , corporations , small businesses , and millions of individuals on social media . The millions of statements were consistent in condemning the killing of Mr . Floyd and expressing a desire to confront and tackle racism and prejudice within their respective organizations and personal lives . The Sarasota County Bar Association ( SCBA ) was not immune from the reckoning .
The SCBA and its Council for Diversity and Inclusion ( CDI ) determined that it would issue a statement in response to Mr . Floyd ’ s death . Once you know that you want to say something , the next step is determining what you want to say . As Keith DuBose , Esq ., and Jennifer Grosso , Esq ., explain in their article “ Listening and Learning : Crafting the SCBA Statement on Diversity ,” the process to getting to the final statement involved significant discussion , debate , and reflection . In the end , a joint statement was issued ( see full text here ). But as the authors of “ Listening and Learning ” stated , “ actions speak louder than words .” It was important for the SCBA and the CDI to not just issue a statement but then to follow up with action .” That action began with town hall meetings .
The town hall meetings brought together a group of individuals from different backgrounds and organizations to share their knowledge about the topic of race relations with the SCBA and wider community members . Three town halls have been offered , all very well attended
Tamara Williams , Esq . Office of the Public Defender
Neil Lyons , Esq . Lurhsen Goldberg , LLC
and each providing various information and perspectives on the topic of race and racism in America . The first town hall brought together some of the Suncoast ’ s top leaders to discuss racism and equality , offer insights about culture and diversity and how we all can contribute to positive change in the world today ; the second townhall was a discussion about building trust between communities and law enforcement ; and the third townhall offered a hard hitting and in-depth examination of racism .
The town halls were also created with eye toward furthering the mission of the CDI : the creation of a more diverse , inclusive , and welcoming legal community . Tamara Williams , Esq ., Assistant Public Defender and CDI Director of Communications , discusses more about the topics covered at the townhalls for those who were not able to attend :
As noted above , the CDI began hosting town halls in response to the death of George Floyd . The CDI recognizes that racial injustice , police brutality , and systemic racism have been going on in our country and local community years prior to Floyd ’ s killing . However , due to the heinous nature of Floyd ’ s killing and the attention it received , the CDI knew that putting on town halls during this time would bring more attention to the issues of racism , and encourage our local community to come up with solutions to solve the problem .
The Council titled the first town hall “ A Conversation about Racism and Equality .” That town hall took place in June , and it was simply to get the conversation started and to point out the elephant in the room . It was to discuss the reactions people had after watching George Floyd ’ s video , the discussions many blacks must have with their children regarding race and police interactions , and the issue of white supremacy .
The second town hall , “ Building Trust Within our Community ,” was geared towards restoring the broken relationship between the black community and law enforcement . For years , there has been over policing in black communities , the use of excessive force , and not enough people of diverse backgrounds
The town halls were also created with eye toward furthering the mission of the CDI : the creation of a more diverse , inclusive , and welcoming legal community .
employed as law enforcement officers nationally and locally . The main questions addressed in this town hall were what law enforcement and the community can do to rebuild trust , and how can everyone work together to restore and rebuild that trust .
The third town hall , “ Silence is not an Option ,” was a call to action . That town hall took place in August and discussed what individuals and organizations can do to combat the issue of racism and police brutality . The panel discussion moved past just talking about race being a problem and forced the local white community to take a look in the mirror regarding their actions towards the black community . Panelist suggested solutions of what could be done to fix the problem .
Given the high interest in the topics covered , the CDI has plans on continuing the conversations regarding racism , white privilege , white supremacy , law enforcement ’ s use of excess force , and equality . The Council will host town halls regularly , continuing to address the critical issues of race . There are also plans to discuss other topics such as health disparities within black communities .
Intermission
This article represents one part of a two-part essay on the town halls and the issues of race and race relations in America . The next town hall entitled “ Policing Blacks ,” will take place on October 30 , 2020 . If you have questions for any of the upcoming town hall panelists , please submit the proposed questions at least two weeks before the scheduled town hall to Holly Lipps , Executive Directive of the SCBA ,
HLipps @ jud12 . flcourts .
16 The Docket · October 2020