Title
Staff Report for Work Session on the Recommendations of the Multicultural Ad Hoc Committee
Staffreport
SUMMARY AND RECOMMENDATIONS
San Leandro is one of the most diverse cities in the nation. As such, the City of San Leandro hosts and sponsors a variety of multicultural programs and events celebrating the City’s diversity. Further expanding on the City’s effort to create inclusive programming, on October 17, 2016, the City Council formed a Multicultural Ad Hoc Committee to explore the possibility of creating a Multicultural Commission. The Ad Hoc Committee was comprised of Councilmembers Ed Hernandez, Benny Lee and Corina Lopez. The Committee met a total of six times and recommends the following for City Council discussion:
• Integrate multicultural components to existing Commissions to institutionalize equity, multiculturalism, and inclusion throughout the organization and City Commissions
• Update the Commission Charge of the following City Commissions to reflect inclusion, diversity and equity: Arts Commission, Human Services Commission, Library-Historical Commission, and Senior Commission (See Attachment 1)
• Update Commission Application to include the following question: “Do you speak a language other than English? If so, please list the languages spoken” (See Attachment 2)
• Continue to explore new Sister City and Friendship City opportunities
• Reengage existing Sister City and Friendship Cities through City Commissions
• Direct Staff to attempt to reach out to community members who established Sister and Friendship City relationships to begin reengagement
• Enhance and expand promotion of City sponsored cultural events including but not limited to social media outlets and the City’s television and YouTube Channels
• Expand outreach to non-English media outlets including but not limited to radio, television, print and blogs
• Dedicate funding to support the above recommendations.
BACKGROUND
The City of San Leandro remains committed to supporting, celebrating, and building upon the City’s diverse population through events, programs and services. San Leandro also partners with community organizations on events and programs that reflect our rich cultural assets. The Library and the Recreation and Human Services Departments plan and execute multicultural events and ongoing programming such as Lunar New Year Celebration, Cinco de Mayo, and bilingual story time. Through the Community Investment Fund and in-kind support, the City Council has also provided financial assistance to community events such as:
• Sponsorship of the Unity in the Community Walk in January 2017
• Speaker Series including Tim Wise, Ron Davis, and Día de los Muertos Performance by Luna Mexicana
• SLED racial justice teen workshop
• Hispanic Community Affairs Council luncheon
• Moon Festival sponsorship (in support of the Asian Community Cultural Assoc.)
• San Leandro panda festival sponsorship
Additionally, in 2016, the City Council allocated $50,000 a year to expand on multilingual outreach. Efforts include project notices in English, Spanish and Chinese, simultaneous translation at council meetings and public meetings, and creating information documents in three languages.
Building on the above activities, the City Council voted to create a Multicultural Ad Hoc Committee on October 17, 2016 to explore and discuss the possibility of forming a Multicultural Commission. The Ad Hoc Committee met on March 9, 2017; April 13, 2017; May 31, 2017; July 10, 2017; September 26, 2017; and November 2, 2017 (See Attachment 3 for meeting agendas). The meetings included presentations from the Library, Police, and Recreation and Human Services Departments so that the Committee could receive detailed information on the existing programs and services that reflect and celebrate San Leandro’s diversity and multiculturalism. One take away from these discussions was that, while the City offers ambitious and highly successful multicultural programming, more could be done to make the community aware of these opportunities.
The Committee also devoted significant attention to the role of San Leandro’s Sister and Friendship Cities. The Committee agreed that these relationships offer an opportunity to strengthen San Leandro’s connections to its cultural heritage and diversity, but also acknowledged that the relationships tend to fade in the years after they are established. The Committee supported efforts to explore a new Sister or Friendship City relationship, but also sought to explore ways to re-engage the existing Sister and Friendship Cities.
Based on the presentations and discussions at the various Committee meetings, the Ad Hoc Committee ultimately decided not to recommend forming a new Multicultural Commission. Rather, the Committee discussed a series of changes to existing City commissions, projects, and practices to strengthen, expand and better support existing activities. This direction is based on a desire to weave an appreciation of multiculturalism and San Leandro’s diversity into all aspects of the organization rather than isolating it into one Commission.
At the last meeting in November, the Committee directed staff to schedule a City Council work session to discuss their recommendations.
Analysis
The recommendation below can only be adopted through resolution:
1. Update the scope and mission of City Commissions, as follows:
a. Arts Commission: adjust the charge to note that public art supported by the Commission should be “inclusive” and “celebrate our cultural diversity”
b. Human Services Commission: adjust the charge to encourage the “equitable” provision of social services to “communities in need,” while also adding a charge to “track performance of funded programs.”
c. Library-Historical Commission: adjust the charge so that the Commission will “recommend and support inclusive programs and activities that celebrate the City’s cultural diversity, Sister and Friendship City engagement, and serve as the liaison between the City Council, citizens, residents, and organizations with an interest in the City's library, historical, and multicultural activities.”
d. Senior Commission: adjust the charge to include consideration of “cultural” needs of senior citizens and recommend “inclusive” methods of meeting those needs.
The recommendations below can be achieved through City Council direction:
1. Update commission application to incorporate multilingual skills.
2. Continue to explore new Sister City and Friendship City opportunities
Recommend to the City Council to explore new Sister City and Friendship City opportunities.
3. Reengage existing Sister and Friendship Cities
a. Staff is directed to initiate programs in partnership with the respective commissions that help the community reengage with existing Sister and Friendship Cities, promoting community building, respect and mutual understanding. Sister and Friendship Cities are below:
• Ribeirao Preto, Brazil
• Ponta Delgada, Azores Islands, Portugal
• Jinotega, Nicaragua
• Naga, Phillipines
• Yangchun, Guangdong Province, China
b. Possible engagement opportunities include:
• Youth virtual café or dinner, in partnership with the Youth Advisory Commission
• Virtual pen pals
• Request Art Commission assistance to refresh City Hall art exhibit to focus more on the City’s diversity.
• Sister City Youth Summer Exchange Program
c. Staff is directed to attempt to reach out to community members who originally established Sister and Friendship City relationships to explore reengagement.
4. Enhance promotion of City sponsored cultural events including but not limited to social media outlets and the City’s television and YouTube channels.
5. Expand outreach to non-English media outlets including but not limited to radio, television, print and blogs.
6. Dedicate funding to implement the recommendations outlined above.
Most of the recommendations do not require new funding. Staff estimates that re-engagement with existing Sister Cities (such as virtual dinners with youth from both communities) would benefit from modest funding, perhaps in the range of $1,000 per year, but notes that this amount could likely be identified in existing appropriations. Potential programs that involve travel to or from Sister Cities would be more significant in terms of cost. Depending on the frequency and number of participants, this could require between $5,000-$10,000 annually. Staff requests direction from the Council if it wishes to establish ongoing funding for these efforts.
ATTACHMENT(S)
Attachment(s) to Staff Report
• Attachment 1: Commission Scope Changes
• Attachment 2: Updated Commission Application
• Attachment 3: Multicultural Ad Hoc Committee Agendas
PREPARED BY: Jeff Kay, Assistant City Manager