Thurston County has adopted a plan to promote racial equity more than two years after declaring racism a crisis.
The Board of County Commissioners last week unanimously approved its Racial Equity Action Plan. The 12-page plan acknowledges systemic racism and charts a phased approach to improving racial equity in the county.
"I'm really thankful for this because at least it gives us a starting point to really move forward," Commissioner and Board Chair Carolina Mejia said. "It gives the community a starting point as well and a way to hold us accountable."
The passage of the plan marks an overdue milestone for the county. The Board of Commissioners declared racism a crisis via resolution on March 9, 2021, and one of its stated goals was to develop an action plan by June 2021. The Board of Health also declared racism a crisis that same day.
The new action plan also comes nearly 10 months after the former county manager fired the county's initial Racial Equity Program Manager. That decision further delayed the plan and left the county's nascent Racial Equity Council in limbo for months until a replacement was found.
The county hired Devi Ogden as the new racial equity program manager in June. Since then, she has reconvened the Racial Equity Council and finalized the action plan that the board approved last Tuesday.
Ogden described the plan as a "living document" that will likely be updated as the county progresses through phases and receives community feedback.
"It is subject to change as we respond to your (the board's) priorities and the priorities and feedback of community members and obviously the availability of resources and funding," Ogden said.
What's in the plan?
The plan has five phases: diagnosis, analysis, strategic planning for infrastructural change, implementation and monitoring for sustainability.
Ogden said the county is starting with the diagnosis phase, which lays a foundation for understanding racial inequities in county governance.
"We're in a phase where we're recognizing that our policies and practices really don't serve the intersectionality of our community members," Ogden said.
The plan outlines three goals for the diagnosis phase, each of which contain specific strategies with deadlines and performance measures.
The first goal is to "increase understanding of institutional and structural racism" among people who work for or represent Thurston County, including county staff, commissioners and volunteers.
"We want to increase awareness and comprehension of racism and inequities, and really develop a culture where everyone who works for the county and all of our residents and community members can experience respect and dignity in their lives," Ogden said.
One of the strategies for the first goal is to establish equity leads in all county departments and offices by March 2024, according to the plan.
The second goal is to "evaluate existing systems, policies processes and programs to identify equity impact." Ogden said this goal focuses on developing an internal culture where all decisions are informed by data and centered on the county's values.
"Understanding that some of our policies and practices have been around for decades, I think we need to go through a bit of a review process to ensure that we are regularly considering equity as we respond to events and evaluate our services and programs," Ogden said.
The third goal is to use the Racial Equity Council to "bridge the gap" between government and community.
The county aims to do this by "strengthening community engagement" with education and communication efforts while remaining "inclusive, culturally informed and socially responsible."
Ogden said the Racial Equity Council will serve a key role in engaging the community. She said she will work with the council to develop communications for the community for the sake of transparency and to elicit feedback.
Why establish equity leads?
Ogden said she plans to regularly meet with equity leads to receive reports on how departments and offices are doing. She then plans to compile that information and share it with the Board of County Commissioners twice a year.
"I got 100% participation already from our departments," Ogden said. "And our officers are also on board getting their equity leads in place."
The plan says these equity leads will be expected to work with Ogden to survey at least 50% of county employees by September 2024. The survey will measure employee's understanding of equity, institutional and systemic racism and bias.
By December 2024, Ogden aims to work with the Department of Human Resources to develop a training plan for all county employees. By that same month, equity leads are expected to help Ogden identify and develop tools to help county employees consider equity throughout business operations.
In collaboration with the equity leads, Ogden plans to develop unique racial equity plans for each office and department by June 2025.
Evelyn Clark, who sits on the Racial Equity Council, addressed the board after Ogden's presentation. She requested that equity leads be people who identify as Black, Indigenous and People of Color (BIPOC) staff.
"That's really important because you can't have somebody who's part of the power dynamic to do racial equity work as the lead," Evelyn Clark said.
Jason Clark, who also sits on the council, reiterated the request made by Evelyn Clark, who is no relation to him. He said the leads should have lived experience with racism.
"It's hard to describe something that you can't identify with," Jason Clark said. "I wouldn't advocate for an issue that wasn't specific to the community or background of me as a person."
Mejia said she agreed that equity leads should be people who identify as BIPOC.
What's next?
Ogden said the plan will go into effect in January and she's already started work on the plan's stated goals.
In the near term, she said she plans to meet with equity leads, update the county's webpage and welcome new members to the Racial Equity Council.
Kamilah Keyes-Brown, who recently joined the Racial Equity Council, said the work ahead will be difficult and uncomfortable but important.
"We are really truly here to do the work and really put in the energy of creating a safe place in Thurston County," Keyes-Brown said. "I'm here for it."
Commissioner Emily Clouse, who officially joined the board Tuesday, called the plan a great starting point and said she looked forward to adjusting it as time goes on. However, she also hearkened back to the county's resolutions from 2021.
"I do agree if we're going to declare racial equity a public health crisis, we need to ensure that our actions align with what we're saying," Clouse said.
