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Good afternoon Equity Action Team,
We appreciate all who were able to join us this past weekend for the April Equity Action Team meeting! Coming together with you all was nourishing after the week that was, and we can't emphasize enough how much your support and participation mean to us. For those who couldn't join, we understand and hope you'll be able to join for the next meeting, Friday, May 14th.
In the meantime, check out the short write-up and presentation files below, as well as some announcements, including one very big and exciting item regarding these newsletters going forward! |
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May Equity Action Team Meeting
The May Equity Action Team meeting will be held Friday, May 14th, from 11:00 AM-2:00 PM.
You do not need to register to attend this meeting, however you do need to create or sign in to a free Zoom account. Although this does present a barrier to access, we are attempting to balance these barriers with the security of us and our people. If you feel this is not the right decision please reach out, the EAT is a space for you all.
If you would like to add this meeting to your calendar, you can do so with these links:
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Meet the Newest Member of the Equity Office team!
We are so excited to introduce enakshi ganguly, who last week joined the team as a Public Information Specialist, Sr., which is Cityspeak for communications extraordinaire. Going forward, ena will be taking lead on all Equity Action Team related items, so start sending your newsletter updates to enakshi.ganguly@austintexas.gov or equity@austintexas.gov. In additon, ena will tackle our other communications-related needs like the incredible Reimagining Public Safety Task Force Report, covered below. Here's an intro from ena: |
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ena ganguly (she/her/hers) is a South Asian immigrant, born in Bihar, India and raised in Missouri City. A writer, editor, and facilitator, ena’s writing has been featured on Buzzfeed, BBC, The Austin Chronicle, and Prizer Arts and Letters. ena has served as the editor for Home-Making: On Belonging, Transience and Memory, in collaboration with the City of Austin’s Asian American Resource Center, and for SEARCH & FIND: An Unflinching Excavation of Coming of Age Stories, supported by Roots. Wounds. Words. and Carnegie Hall.
Other than working with organizations to support writers become authors, ena has written content for small businesses and nonprofits to bring character and voice into their branding.
Prior to joining the Equity Office, ena was the health and wellness program coordinator at allgo, a queer people of color organization, where she facilitated wellness workshops for over 200 people, and conducted cultural competency trainings for corporations, non-profits, and health care providers.
ena graduated from the University of Texas at Austin with a Bachelor of Arts in Government and Humanities Honors, with a thesis on women’s work and labor laws in India. In her free time, ena loves to go on late-night taco runs with her partner and tries to be a better plant mom.
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Housing and Planning Department Presentation
The Housing team joined us on Saturday to present and gather feedback on their federally-funded programs. The slides are accessible below, but the conversation shifted to focus much more directly on the overall work and processes utilized by Housing.
The heart of the issue raised by EAT members on Saturday was the lack of clear, accessible notice to residents about development projects in their neighborhood, as well as the movement of staff and council to approve City-subisidized development in spite of the protests of the neighborhood.
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Equity Analysis Zones
Transportation joined to discuss their idea for "Equity Analysis Zones," basically a mapping exercise to identify areas of the City most impacted by inequity and systemic racism.
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Reimagining Public Safety Task Force Report Released
In response to the police brutality experienced by Black, Latinx, and immigrant communities in Austin, the City of Austin convened the Reimagining Public Safety (RPS) Task Force, a community-city joint taskforce, to co-create new ways to support communities in crises. Since August of 2020, the RPS Task Force traced the history of policing, and its role in colonization and slavery, to its present purpose and impacts in Austin. Doing so informed the Task Force’s guiding values for decision making and governance. After almost a year, the RPS Task Force puts forth final proposals to reimagine public safety beyond policing for the City of Austin’s consideration.
See the Task Force and workgroup members present on their recommendations at the City Council Work Session tomorrow, April 20th, at 2 PM. See below for ways to tune in:
Viewing Options
The event will be interpreted into 7 languages, see below for call-in details:
- English: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73143#
- Arabic: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73141#
- Burmese: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73142#
- Korean: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73145#
- Mandarin: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73144#
- Spanish: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73147#
- Urdu: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73146#
- Vietnamese: (540) 409-4375, Ext. 73148#
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Announcements
- RENT Assistance available for victims of domestic and interpersonal violence through Survive2Thrive. Please email Courtney Santana if you or someone you know is in need of help.
- Attendees also shared information about Texas House Bill 2989, which seeks to change the requirements of notice for property rezoning, and rights of homeowners to protest rezoning. This bill is connected to an active suit against the City of Austin, and so we are limited in what we can share about it. However, you can find more information about the bill here.
- The Austin Healthy Adolescent Program is recruiting for Peer Health Educators. This is an opportunity for youth to get paid to help educate peers and build leadership around sexual health and wellness. See more info and apply here.
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Complete and Spread the Word: LGBTQIA+ Quality of Life Study! |
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