Lacey City Council voted unanimously this week to adopt a Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging strategic plan for the city, a document the city’s equity commission had worked on for more than three years.
But immediately before the council voted, Deputy Mayor Malcolm Miller spoke out about why the plan and diversity is important.
Miller started by praising the equity commission, the city and youth council, all of whom had a role in shaping the diversity, equity and inclusion plan.
“I say that because DEI programs are under attack,” he said. “I don’t know if you guys have been following the news or following the legislation in some of our southern states, but there are many places where they just don’t feel they need any diversity or equity or inclusion, and are stripping those things from college campuses, shutting them down, saying you will no longer get any funding, and closing their doors in an effort to not have inclusion or equity or diversity, and it’s sad, and so I’m very proud of what what we’ve done here.”
Miller acknowledged that even he had doubts about whether the plan would be created.
“I wondered, you know, is this going to stick? Is it going to work? Is this something that, you know, is going to run out of steam? And it didn’t.”
Instead, he watched it evolve, he said.
“And then the meetings started, and then the reports started, and the updates came in, and then the youth council got involved, and we all came together as a community to really make this happen,” Miller said.
“Sometimes you leave people out and you didn’t even know you were leaving them out,” he said. “Sometimes you forsake somebody and you didn’t know that you were forsaking them. This is just a safety net that we’ve put in place for our city, so that everybody here feels welcome, they feel included and there’s an equitable passing of rules and laws and ordinances in the city of Lacey. So this is a huge congratulations for this city in this place, in this time.”
Assistant City Manager Shannon Kelley-Fong shared details about the plan.
“The purpose of this document is to create a strategic guide for the city to advance and support equity efforts in the greater Lacey community for the next six years,” she said. “Specifically, the plan identifies ways the city can serve as a lead, a partner and as an advocate, working with community partners to build a more equitable and welcoming place where diversity is celebrated, opportunities are equitable and barriers to participation are eliminated.”
The plan includes four goal areas:
- Workforce and Work Environment: The City strives to be a culturally competent organization that implements diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging practices.
- Community Access and Engagement: The City endeavors to provide accessible communications, meaningful and responsive participation, and improve community connectivity for all.
- Policies, Programs, and Services: The City works to integrate diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging into all city policies, projects, programs, and services.
- Livibility: The City aims to provide and assist with advancing equitable economic opportunities, a diversity of housing and human services, and a healthy environment for all.
The complete report can be found on Lacey’s website .
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