HomeMy WebLinkAboutTRC Booklet 1 30 2024CITY OF IOWA CITY
Ad Hoc
Truth & Reconciliation
Commission
Who Are We?
The Iowa City City Council established the Ad Hoc Truth
and Reconciliation Commission (TRC) in 2020 to bear
witness to the truth of racial injustice in Iowa City and to
carry out restorative justice through the collection of
testimony and public hearings, with such work to include
a recommendation to the Council of a plan for dedicating
and/or renaming public spaces and/or rights of way in
honor of the Black Lives Matter movement.
Our commission represents a collection of activists from
diverse backgrounds calling on the Iowa City community
to account for its history of racialized oppression. We are
individuals who are committed to structural change,
truth-telling, healing trauma, and repair. We share a
vision for an equitable and sustainable community free
of violence and systemic racism. We believe the time has
come to foster change.
The Iowa City Ad Hoc Truth and Reconciliation
Commission is committed to implementing and
sustaining grassroots, community-centered truth-telling
processes to address past and present instances of both
direct and indirect acts of violence, discrimination, and
racism in Iowa City. We will collect testimony from a
variety of sources including but not limited to schools,
housing providers, government officials, health care,
banking institutions, and law enforcement.
Our Mission
Land
Acknowledgement
We meet today in the community of Iowa City, which
now occupies the homelands of Native American Nations
to whom we owe our commitment and dedication. The
area of Iowa City was within the homelands of the Iowa,
Meskwaki, and Sauk, and because history is complex and
time goes far back beyond memory, we also
acknowledge the ancient connections of many other
Indigenous Peoples here.
The history of broken treaties and forced removal that
dispossessed Indigenous Peoples of their homelands was
and is an act of colonization and genocide that we can
not erase. We implore the Iowa City community to
commit to understanding and addressing these
injustices as we work toward equity, restoration, and
reparations.
To learn more scan the QR code
or visit: icgov.org/TRC
Duties
Fact Finding: The TRC shall collect evidence of
discrimination and racial injustice that inform and
support the fundamental institutional and policy
reforms necessary to address systemic racism.
Truth Telling: The TRC shall provide opportunities for
those impacted and traumatized by racial injustice to
share their experience and create a repository for
expressed community stories, regardless of media,
that can be cataloged and used to educate.
Reconciliation: The TRC shall facilitate direct
conversation among community members of color,
white community members, and representatives of
various sectors in which people of color experience
discrimination and make opportunities for the
community to learn about racial injustice while
providing recommendations to the City Council that
will move Iowa City toward justice, equity,
community, and harmony.
FAQ
What is a Truth Telling Hearing?
A public engagement where “Truth Tellers” tell about
instances of racial oppression, violence, and marginalization;
A place where Truth Tellers are heard by witnesses, including
both TRC Commissioners and community members;
Where Truth Tellers’ experiences are gathered to push toward
structural change, healing trauma, and repair.
Who Gives Testimony?
Traditionally silenced and disenfranchised local residents who
come forth to give a firsthand account of mistreatment;
Local residents who become empowered by giving voice to
those events or experiences to active listeners;
Those who desire to come forth to tell his/ her/their story;
and/or
A grassroots, local community, neighborhood, street, school,
local business, etc.
Who Bears Witness?
Local residents interested in learning more about experiences
of racialized police violence;
City council leaders and policymakers;
Family members, healers, and neighbors;
Anyone who desires to expose a community’s harm against its
other members and is passionate about social and racial
justice change.
ADHOCTRUTH@IOWA-CITY.ORG
410 E WASHINGTON ST.
IOWA CITY, IA 52240
Meetings
The Commission meets the first and third Thursdays of
each month at 7PM in Emma J. Harvat Hall, City Hall, 410
E. Washington Street, Iowa City, Iowa.
Contact
To view our website, scan the
QR code or visit: icgov.org/TRC