Mayor Arrigo Announces Progress on Racial Equity Initiatives
October 6, 2020
Revere Selected to Develop Racial Equity Municipal Action Plan in Partnership with MAPC
Newly Established Human Rights Commission Holds Inaugural Meeting
Findings of Racial Equity Data Analysis Now Available
Tuesday, October 6, 2020 – Today Mayor Brian Arrigo announced progress on several racial equity initiatives underway since June, including holding the first meeting of Revere’s newly reinstated Human Rights Commission and the City’s selection to participate as just one of six communities that will partner with the Metropolitan Area Planning Council (MAPC) to develop a racial equity municipal action plan.
“We’ve begun to do the hard work toward achieving racial equity in Revere, and have focused over the past several months on putting the tools and resources in place to create lasting change,” said Mayor Brian Arrigo. “I'm grateful to the leaders within our community who have agreed to serve our City on the Human Rights Commission and look forward to the progress we can make together. There is still a long road ahead, but I'm proud of what we've accomplished to-date and energized to do this work on behalf of all our residents."
Racial Equity Municipal Action Plan
The City of Revere, along with five other Greater Boston communities, will participate in the Racial Equity Municipal Action Plan (REMAP) program, a collaboration between MAPC, the Government Alliance on Race and Equity (GARE), and the Federal Reserve Bank of Boston (FRBB). This program will help the city explore racial equity in Revere and help tackle causes of inequality in the community. The first four months of the year-long program will focus on training, reflection, and self-assessment. In the final eight months, each municipality will develop a racial equity municipal action plan and begin to implement elements of the plan.
Human Rights Commission
In June, Mayor Arrigo announced the reactivation of the Revere Human Rights Commission, and on October 1 the Commission held its first meeting. During the inaugural meeting, commission members discussed their goals for the Commission, and began to establish a mission statement to guide their work to protect the constitutional, civil and human rights of all people within the city and to promote understanding among individuals and groups in the city through improving the quality of discourse and eliminating unlawful discrimination. The members of the Human Rights Commission are:
- Lynn Alexis, Esq., Legal associate at Feinberg, Cambell, Zack, P.C., and Administrative Chief at United States Marine Corps
- Reverend Timothy Bogertman, MDiv, MHEd, Associate Pastor of First Congressional Church of Revere
- Revere Fire Chief Christopher Bright, Chair Pro-Tempore
- Revere Police Chief David Callahan
- Jalon Fowler, active community member, advocate and technologist
- Dr. Lourenço Garcia, Assistant Superintendent of Inclusion and Equity, Revere Public Schools
- Chaimaa Mansour Hossaini, active community member, social justice advocate and lead youth organizer of Revere Youth in Action
- Janine Grillo Marra, founder and owner of Tranquil Flame Yoga & Wellness
- Rachid Moukhabir, President, MACIR (Moroccan American Connections in Revere)
- Kourou Pich, Executive Director, HarborCOV
- Kathi Anne Reinstein, former State Representative and Chief of Government Relations and External Affairs Roca, Inc.
Racial Equity Data Analysis
Over the course of the summer, the Office of Innovation and Data Management worked with several city departments to conduct a deeper analysis into racial equity data. Researchers Noah Coolidge of the Heller School of Public Management, Spencer Gurley-Green of the Harvard Kennedy School of Government, and Aaron Askanase, freelance data analyst, gathered, studied and analyzed racial equity data. Their October 1 presentation to the Human Rights Commission can be viewed here.
###