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Mayor Brodeur announces formation of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Anti-Racism Advisory Task Force; seeks applicants.

Posted on: January 20, 2021 - 5:10pm

Today I am pleased to announce that I am creating an advisory task force to help me, my departments, community organizations, businesses, and all residents alike to work cooperatively and with purpose as we strive to improve the diversity, equity, inclusion and anti-racism efforts we each must undertake.

This advisory board will be critical as I implement policy level changes in our provision of City services in order to ensure that each of our residents and students are treated with fairness and equity. Additionally, this taskforce will hold me, my administration, and our community itself accountable, and will serve as a forum which centers voices of residents of color. The last several months have taught me that this is hard, slow work, despite how urgent the need is. I am eager to find partners in the community who can contribute to this effort honestly and productively.

Our City today enjoys an unprecedented level of diversity, and it is vital and I as Mayor and every leader in this community act with purpose and intention to ensure that there is room at the table for all Melrosians. Many residents, either through boards and commissions or grassroots organizing have been doing incredible work on these topics. I’m hoping that this task force presents an opportunity for us to align these efforts and coordinate our focus and work.

The task force shall consist of:

  1. The Mayor or his Designee
  2. The City of Melrose Human Resources Director or her Designee
  3. The President of the City Council or his designee
  4. The Chair of the School Committee or her designee
  5. The Chair of the Human Rights Commission or his Designee
  6. Six individuals, each of whom will have one or more of the following characteristics:

-Residents of color living in Melrose

-Parents of the Melrose Public Schools student

-Residents with professional experience working on diversity, equity, and inclusion issues.

The task force will convene on a monthly basis for an hour (or longer in the event there are guest speakers). The task force will divide into sub groups in order to work on multiple priorities at once. Individuals of all ages, high school aged and older are encouraged to apply. 

Qualified individuals may submit their resume and statement of interest to DEI@Cityofmelrose.org by February 5th.