Merrillville diversity committee proposed
Council president: Recent events show need for group
Merrillville Town Council President Rick Bella is proposing to form a special council committee focused on diversity, inclusion and equity, saying recent tragic circumstances have sparked the need for self-reflection in individuals and communities across the nation.
Bella, D-5th, presented a draft of his proposal to fellow council members during a workshop session Wednesday.
He said he envisions the committee being n eve r- e n d - ing and everchanging and would ensure town departments and first responders receive substantive and ongoing diversity training.
“I thought the committee could be a catch-all for ideas,” he said.
Council members and ClerkTreasurer Kelly White Gibson were receptive to the concept, with some pointing to a similar move made by Gov. Eric Holcomb on the heels of nationwide protests after the deaths of George Floyd and other African Americans by police.
Holcomb, a Republican, last month announced a multi-step process to address diversity, inclusion and equity that included the creation of an officer who will focus on improving equity, inclusion and opportunity across all state government operations, the use of body cameras for every frontline Indiana State Police
trooper by the spring of 2021 and a required third-party review of state police and law enforcement academy curriculum and training at the Indiana Law Enforcement Academy.
“I think this is definitely necessary. The town of Merrillville hasn’t even risen to the level of our governor,” Gibson said.
“The town has changed. There are a lot more African Americans and Latinos. They need to feel included in the town politically, economically and socially,” she said.
Gibson, an attorney, said she has heard plenty of complaints about police brutality in the community, though the number of complaints has decreased.
Councilman Leonard White, D-7th, said he went to some of the protests held this summer and he found that systemic racism and police brutality were their major concerns.
According to the U.S. Census Bureau website, Merrillville has a population of 34,792, with 41.1% white, 44.4% African American and 14.9% Hispanic or Latino.
Gibson is African American, as are Councilmen White, Donald Spann, D-1st, and Richard Hardaway, D-2nd. The town recently hired its first African American as chief of police, Wiley Luther Cuttino. The head of its planning and building department, Sheila Shine, is also African American.
While Bella’s draft called for reaching out to the African American and Latino communities, White said minority and women business owners need to be part of the process as well, and resident Craig Lamb said people with disabilities also need to be included.
Some council members noted that the first step should be training for the council members.
“Before we do anything we need to train ourselves. Once we get where we need to be we can form the committee,” Councilman Jeffrey Minchuk, D-3rd, said.
Councilman Richard Hardaway, D-2nd, said once the committee’s created, it can’t be ended.
“Then it’s doomed to failure,” Hardaway said.
He also warned that the committee needs to be careful not to offend anyone.
“We need to understand that everyone’s different to make it work,” he said.
Bella said the proposal needs to be worked on and wouldn’t roll out right away, but a line item would be placed in the budget for expenses related to the committee.