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HomeMy WebLinkAboutTRC Transcript - December 16, 2021[00:00:00] [MUSIC] So I'm gonna be running this meeting. We're gonna do things a little bit differently. Um, but Steph, do you wanna do [00:00:12] the call to order or enroll call, I mean? [00:00:14] Yeah. Uh, Commissioner Ali? [00:00:15] Present. [00:00:16] Commissioner Daniel? Commissioner Dillard. [00:00:20] Commissioner Gather. [00:00:24] Present? [00:00:25] Commissioner Johnson. [00:00:27] Here. [00:00:27] Commissioner Harris. [00:00:29] Here. [00:00:31] Commissioner Nobis. Commissioner Rivera. [00:00:34] Here. [00:00:35] Uh, Commissioner Traore. [00:00:39] Here. [00:00:41] Perfect. And usually they'll just kinda like scraggle in towards there and you'll move them. Um, okay. I'm gonna read the land acknowledgment. Um, we meet today in the community of Iowa City, which is- which now occupies the homelands of Native [00:01:00] American nations to whom which 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 cannot erase. We implore the Iowa City community to commit to understanding and addressing these injustices, as we work toward equity, restoration, and reparations. [00:01:43] All right, and then we'll go to agenda item number 4, which is approval of the minutes. I'm gonna make a motion to approve. [00:01:56] Rivera second. [00:01:57] Okay. Uh, it's been properly moved and seconded to [00:02:00] approve the main minutes from December second. Commissioner Ali. [00:02:04] Yes. [00:02:05] Commissioner Daniel. Commissioner Dillard. Commissioner Gather. [00:02:14] Yes. [00:02:15] Commissioner Johnson. [00:02:16] Yes. [00:02:18] Commissioner Harris. [00:02:19] Yes. [00:02:20] Commissioner Nobis. I think she's joining us. [00:02:23] Yes. [00:02:24] Thank you. Uh, Commissioner Rivera? [00:02:26] Yes. [00:02:27] And Commissioner Traore. [00:02:28] Yes. [00:02:30] That's eight, zero. Thank you. Excuse me, seven, zero. Perfect. Um, then we'll go on to agenda item number 5, which is correspondence. Um, and, I don't know on how much we re- we haven't had correspondence in a while. So I don't- I just wanna make sure that you guys saw those, um, emails that we got. And then, um, hopefully by the next meeting, you guys will have read them, and then we can kinda get started [00:03:00] on the RFP facilitation process, [00:03:03] um, if that's okay. Just cause I don't wanna put anything [00:03:06] too heavy on anyone's plates [00:03:08] right before the holidays [00:03:09] and we're all gonna be leaving town [00:03:12] or staying here, [00:03:13] um, if that's okay with you guys. [00:03:18] Cool. Um, okay. So let's move on to agenda item number 6, um, public comment of items not on the agenda. Um, the TRC members will not engage, uh, in discussion with public concerning said items. Um, does anyone on Zoom have anything they wanna make for public comment? [00:03:47] Yeah. Okay. Can you hear me? [00:03:48] Yep. [00:03:49] Okay. [00:03:49] Uh, I just- that may be brief, but, um, I'll just- and I don't know if all of you are aware, but, uh, Tuesday night and Wednesday day, the city refused to provide shelter [00:04:00] for people when they knew a storm was coming. And they just si- simply refused to provide shelter to people, and just want to make sure like everyone here is aware of that, if they aren't already aware of that, and just so y'all know how trash this city is. Thank you. [00:04:19] Thanks, Noah. Does anyone else on Zoom have public comment on items not on the agenda? [00:04:35] Okay. Anyone in person have, um, public comment on items that are on the agenda? All right. Um, and so [OVERLAPPING] [00:04:48] We have one. [00:04:48] Oh, we do have one. Yay. [00:04:50] Um, I just read today that you guys got an extension. That's like really phenomenal. You like made [00:05:00] a path for yourselves. And got it. So congratulations. [00:05:06] Thank you. [00:05:12] Thank you. [00:05:12] Um, so if there's nobody else from the public that wants to comment, um, I just wanted to say before we move on to agenda item number 7, um, I was hoping that it would be okay if we could have Eduardo Gonzalez, um, actually present first because, uh, Eduardo is overseas right now and has a little bit of a time constraint. Is that okay with everyone? Okay, perfect. So we're actually gonna go skip over seven, start with agenda item number 8, um, which is the presentation by Eduardo Gonzalez. And we're gonna do this a little bit differently than we normally, um, do agenda items. Usually there's, um, public comment, then the presentation, [00:06:00] and then, um, discussion by commissioners. But I really think that it's important for people who are involved, [00:06:07] um, in this discussion to be able to hear, [00:06:10] um, Eduardo and hear his presentation before, [00:06:15] um, you know, making comments or questions. And I would suggest, uh, just for the sake of time, [00:06:21] that if you have questions, [00:06:22] write them down, um, and then we'll get them to Eduardo [00:06:26] at the end of his presentation [00:06:28] just so that he can make sure he gets everything, [00:06:31] um, said that he wants to. Is that okay? [00:06:37] Yep. [00:06:37] All right. So, um, Eduardo, if you are ready to present, we are all ready for you. [00:06:48] Thank you so much, Commissioner Ali. Um, members of the Iowa City Truth Commission, it is really an honor to be in this meeting. It's not the first time, [00:07:00] um, and, um, and I think, um, it is important to reiterate, as I always do, that there are people across the nation following what happens in Iowa City. A Truth and Reconciliation Commission is not a simple thing to do. It is a complicated, sometimes a excruciating process, and as you clearly have seen, but there is a lot of goodwill. Not just in your city, but as I said, across the country. Just a couple of weeks ago, um, over 30 colleagues across the US, uh, reach out to each other, right in the middle of the Thanksgiving, um, holidays, to write a letter to the city council, expressing our dismay that there was harassment against the chairperson of the [00:08:00] commission and in all humility invoking Iowa City to pay attention to what is happening in terms of the commission and supporting its work. I'm very, very happy to see that the city council has agreed on an extension. I think that now the challenge is to make the best possible use of this political capital that the Truth Commission has, uh, created for itself. Um, I do think that if you got an extension, and if you are going to have the capacity to use your resources wisely, um. [00:08:43] I think there are two or three, um, ideas and observations that I would like to suggest to you. First of all, is that it would be wise to invest some time in careful planning. I think it is important to [00:09:00] start by having a good hard look at that mandate] [00:09:06] that was approved over a year ago, [00:09:10] and see what is the key objective [00:09:14] that you want to achieve in the time you have left. [00:09:19] And, um, ensure that from that objective, you can derive specific tasks, functions that you need to address. I imagine that as is with the practice [00:09:37] of most truth commissions, [00:09:41] those functions are going to entail listening to, um, statement givers, listening to truth-tellers. A commission is not, um, is not a talk club. Is a place where commissioners don't go to talk themselves. Is a place where commissioners [00:10:00] go to listen to us. So the first objective, I think, the first function is going to be to listen and to create the respectful, the empathetic space for, um, statement givers, for truth-tellers in your community to talk about what has happened to them. Um, a second thing that is going to be important, I think, is not just to listen, an activity that can happen in small meetings, one-on-one, uh, spaces. But to organize hearings. That is to organize public events in which a few persons that are prepared to do it, they'll have the capacity to do it that are in the place to do it in a safe and respectful manner, can share their experiences to be recognized by the commission as survivors. [00:11:00] But also to educate the community about truths that are hidden, that are submerged, that are denied. So that second activity, I think, is fundamental. And third, I think, um, you have to start thinking in a very practical way about what are the measures that you think your city needs to take on in order to fight racism and the kind of human rights violations that you have suffered. Because that is exactly what you have suffered. This is not just any kind of abuse. Is a violation of fundamental human rights, is the denial of the right to health, the right to fair education, to living conditions, to labor conditions, on top of other forms of abuse [00:12:00] like abusive policing, for example. [00:12:03] So if the commission is able to focus [00:12:07] with laser-like capacity on a specific list [00:12:13] of conducts and abuses [00:12:15] that are fundamental to address, [00:12:18] then the commission can do all those [00:12:19] three things that I- that I'm mentioning. [00:12:22] Take testimony and systematize that, organize hearings so that the city can be educated about what has been happening in its midst, and preparing concrete policy recommendations to avoid the recurrence of these human rights violations. Those to me are the three fundamental tasks that any truth commission has, uh, conducted, um, nationally across the United States in other truth commissions, but fundamentally internationally. [00:13:00] I do think that you are very well situated to do that for a number of reasons. Because first of all, as I mentioned at the very beginning, there is a lot of solidarity going on, believe it or not. There are a lot of people across this country that would be very happy to support the Iowa City Truth Commission. There are, um, not just the persons that you would normally call experts, people with a specific specialized knowledge. But there are people, most importantly, who have seen directly what it is to tell the truth to power. Um, people who have done that already in truth commissions in the US and abroad. I would start by looking at the people who signed the letter that we sent to the city council. We will find there survivors [00:14:00] of the Greensboro massacre. We're going to find in a former commissioner in the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of Kenya. We are going to find in people who have published extensively on truth commissions, who have supported truth commissions in the past. So for each of those three big tasks, I am pretty sure that you can find, uh, the adequate support. Now- and this is the last point I want to make. I do think that when I say support, I am not saying that anyone, for even if they have a lot of expertise, a lot of knowledge, I don't think that anyone can substitute you. You are the ones making these decisions. You are the ones listening to what people [00:14:53] have to say and thinking of what is best for your city, [00:14:56] for your community, for these survivors in your city. [00:15:00] And - and so there is a lot of resources. I think you can definitely, um, reach out to a number of people [00:15:08] who are going to do this disin- [00:15:10] in a disinterested manner and, [00:15:13] uh, and- and on the other side, there is already so much in terms of lessons learned, in terms of knowledge about what truth commissions do to be effective. There is a lot of work to do, Iowa city. Um, there is a tremendous need to communicate clearly to the city what has happened and why is it that you're getting an extension, and what you intend to do with that extension to honor the trust of the city and to honor the trust of the survivors. Um, I will be, of course, honored to keep supporting the process of the Iowa City Truth Commission. I think, is an extremely interesting, [00:16:00] um, experience. I have seen my share of truth commissions across the world, and I think you have a number of unique things going on. Your mandate is not the classical mandate of a truth commission that is looking for a few very specific human rights violations. An act of torture, an act of a massacre, an act of killing. You are looking into a structure which is what makes it so difficult, so challenging, and at the same time so incredibly interesting. And don't make any mistake. It is because you are going to address a structure that you have got so many resistances. It is not out of chance. Structures resist. That's what they know how to do, right? The fact that you had such a difficult [00:17:00] tenure, the disputes, the discussions, the misunderstandings, the accusations. All that is the noise of a structure that doesn't want to go quietly. So I do think that this is a very, very interesting truth commission. You are addressing what a human rights lawyer would probably call violations of economic, social, and cultural rights and the intersection of those rights with racism. And so it is a very difficult, but I think, completely worth effort to do. And if you can focus on those three big tasks or the ones you think are the most important and can think of specifically what- how to, um, conduct those functions: taking testimony, educating the public, creating [00:18:00] recommendations for the city. If you can do those three things, I think you have a truth commission. And - and so that would be my- um, the remarks I had somehow prepared. And, uh, and I do think that if you [00:18:16] as a commission can spend some time thinking hard, [00:18:19] uh, about how to organize your- your time, [00:18:25] um, that is going to be time well invested, really. Um, I do think- I have heard that you wanted to start already with the education of the public through the establishment of public hearings. I think that's a fantastic idea. There are so many examples I wish I could have time to share with you. But, you know, thanks to YouTube, you can jump in and watch the, um, the public hearings of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission of South Africa, of Kenya, of Liberia, of Guinea, um, the Gambia, and [00:19:00] Greensboro, and Maine. So you- you can do that- that research. But I do think that- that is a fantastic idea. Is a great place to start with the condition that is a very prepared and careful space. That the people who come to talk and to share their experiences in a tremendous act of generosity, do that in a protected, in a safe, in a respectful environment. That they have time to prepare what they want to say, and- and they have the, uh, opportunity to, uh, talk to you in advance, to prepare their testimony, uh, so that it can be as impactful as- as it deserves to be. Well, so I stop there, uh, just emphasizing those three tasks. Um, taking testimony, getting evidence, um- um, systematizing, sensitizing the public, educating the public through hearings, and, [00:20:00] um, designing policy. Designing public policy to avoid the recurrence of these human rights violations. So that's, uh, my presentation. Thank you so much, uh, Commissioner Allie. I- I- I suppose I can stay for a few minutes if there is comment or- or any kind of interaction. [00:20:17] Yeah- yeah. I'm gonna open it up to the public on Zoom first, um, for any public comments or questions regarding that quick little synopsis. [00:20:33] Not seeing any hands up. Um, anybody in he- [OVERLAPPING] Huh. Oh, there is one. Perfect. [00:20:39] And thank you. [00:20:42] I just- [00:20:42] All right. Nicholas. [00:20:43] Yeah. I just had a brief comment. I personally wanted to thank Eduardo for offering his time and his expertise, and that's it. [00:20:55] Perfect. [00:20:55] Uh, does anyone inside here have [00:20:58] a public comment they'd like [00:21:00] to make? [00:21:01] No. Okay. [00:21:02] And so then, it looks like Commissioner Daniel, [00:21:06] uh, has, uh, their hand raised [00:21:09] and then we'll continue and see [00:21:11] if anyone else on Zoom has their hand raised [00:21:13] and then we'll go to the commissioners [00:21:14] that are live. [00:21:15] Go ahead, Daphne. [00:21:18] All right. Thank You, Commissioner Lee. Mr. Gonzalez, thank you so much for joining us this evening. We- we met a little, uh, I think a week or so ago. And during that meeting, you- you started talking about, um, some of the pros and cons, um, but main- er, I think mainly cons of why commissioners probably shouldn't- um, shouldn't partake in the live truth-telling. Um, so could you- could you elaborate because it- it made a lot of sense, and I think [00:22:00] it's something all the commissioners should hear. Thank you. [00:22:07] Do you want me to go question by question or you want to take a- a number first? [00:22:13] That- you can go ahead. [00:22:16] All right. [OVERLAPPING] Yes. Thank you so much. Um, it's an excellent question by Daphney Daniel. Um, so I really do think that a commission is a place where the commissioners have the function to listen to the respectful listeners of what the community has to say. Of course, I know the commissioners are there because they do have experiences of what has happened to them, and there are surely many stories there. But I do think that- perhaps it would be most valuable at this point to invite the commu- the community to talk, and to, [00:23:00] um, do an effort of precisely doing that, listening. If you have a look at the practice of different truth commissioners across the world, certainly also in- in the US, um, that is what commissioners do. They listen, sometimes they ask questions, not all the time. Sometimes they just listen what the big things, what the survivors want to say. And just by being there, just by recognizing with their presence, honoring with their presence what survivors have to say, they are already making a tremendous contribution. Also, goes without saying, they are listening and they're taking no. There is, um, a clear statement taking function taking place there. And- uh, and so [00:24:00] all this information [00:24:01] that is coming is being honored publicly [00:24:04] by the commissioners, [00:24:05] but it's also, um, I think being received um, and- and noted. Also, I think something that is important [00:24:13] is that because the structure that I was mentioning [00:24:17] is going to find every possible pretexts [00:24:20] to deny the information and to deny the importance or the commission does, um, it's important not to give them that pretext, right? Um, not to give them the excuse [00:24:32] that somehow the commissioners have biases, [00:24:36] because they themselves are survivors or victims of what has happened. Um, I think it's important to, um, ensure that the commissioners, uh, have the role of, uh, listeners that are empathetic, but also have the capacity to understand in a measured way and in an objective [00:25:00] way, the information that they are receiving. So that's- that's what I- what I think that it is very important that the role of the [inaudible 00:25:06] one of listeners. You- you know, you have a look at the famous South African Truth Commission, you will see Bishop Tutu inviting people to talk, listening people, embracing people, following up on what people are doing and saying, right? Comforting people, taking their testimonies to heart. Um, and he had a number of things to say for sure, but I think his main role and his example was to show that even with all that experience, you are able to listen. That's- that's the important thing. [00:25:47] Thank you. Um, so I don't think that anyone else on Zoom has any questions, but I was just going to, um, go first, really quick with one thing. [00:26:00] Um, so when we had out our conversation last week and we were taught- since we've talked about the extension and stuff, um, one thing you had mentioned to me was that, you- the only edit that you would make to the timeline that we proposed was that you would give us much more time for preparation, um, and you used the words like protocol. We have to figure out a criteria, how to invite, who to invite. Um, and- and I remember, and this can be- we can talk about the other parts of like the Peruvian, TRC specifically, but I really enjoyed how there was - like a lot of, um, focus on the psychosocial support of, um, the people that were giving their testimonies. Like you heard 17,000 different testimonies but only 200 got recorded. Um, so I, kind of, want to talk about just like the preparation and what you think will go into making this successful. [00:26:58] Yeah. That is exactly the practice [00:27:00] of most- most, if not all, [00:27:03] truth commissioners. [00:27:04] They listen to a great number of people [00:27:07] who come to give their testimony. [00:27:09] That testimony becomes part [00:27:11] of the record of commission for sure. [00:27:16] But the commission takes a reduced number of those people [00:27:20] who are prepared to give impactful testimony, [00:27:24] so that their testimony can educate the public. So you are absolutely right. In the case of Peru, we received about 17,000 statements, but, um, only- we only organized about 10 sessions of hearings in which about 200 people were, um, listened to. In South Africa, they receive about 22,000 testimonies, if I'm not wrong. And, uh, if I'm not wrong either, um, they heard not more than 1,500- 1,600 persons in actual hearings. Uh, and that is because they organized over 40 hearings, [00:28:00] um, over the three years of work. So- uh, so there is, um, a- a difference. And why is it that do you do that? Because you want your testimony to be impactful, and- and because by doing that, you are educating the public and you are also, um, creating representation for that universe of people that have survived abuse. Um, there are going to be always in the population that has some [inaudible 00:28:31] abuse, those who have certain experience telling their stories, those who have lived experiences, uh, that are particularly illustrative of the patterns of abuse. Um, there are people who are ready to do it, who want to do it, and who have the, um, social support and the psychosocial support to do it. So, um, I don't think you should just open the door and let [inaudible 00:28:59] to talk [00:29:00] because first of all, you know, that- um, that is going to be very disorganized and people are going to get tired immediately of that disorder, that lack of- of direction, so to speak, that lack of message, and also, um, you know, you want to have, uh, the best possible experience for the survivors [inaudible 00:29:22]. And they are going to appreciate these ones. Our criteria to select those 200 people were basically that we wanted, um, the, uh, victims and survivors to come from different parts of the country, to not be just from one particular area, one particular social group. We wanted people to represent different eras- different times of, uh, the conflict, the armed conflict that we suffer. Uh, we wanted to have an equal number of men and women. Uh, [00:30:00] we wanted to have, um, people who were victims of different institutions, meaning in our case, um, the security forces and the terrorist organizations. And we, above all, wanted, uh, people who were prepared and who were sustained in and contained in their process, which is why each person that testified in our public hearings, um, had, uh, being allocated the support of, uh, member of our psychosocial team well in advance to the hearing and after the hearing too. So all that, all those preconditions, if you want, um, is what is behind the selectivity of the hearing and the impact of the hearing, and also, um, to say, um, you know, it is that which- which makes, um, a hearing also educational [00:31:00] because, um, you wanted the public to hear something that - that is completely undeniable, you know, something that, um, has the strength of the voice of the truth-teller, something that is told in the first-person, this happened to me, right? Um, that I think is, uh, extremely moving. Um, it provides a space for some form of catharsis, um, commitment to fight so that these situations don't- don't happen again. [00:31:37] Does anyone else here have any questions that they wanna ask him? And if not, you guys can always feel free to send Stephanie or I the messages and I can relay them to Eduardo and we can always set up a time for Eduardo and me and someone else to individually Zoom, just kind of like what I did with Daphney, [00:32:00] um, if that's of interest to anybody. But, um, I appreciate all of your help. Thank you for all of the resources. Thank you for everything that you've done for this small commission in Iowa City, Eduardo. Um, you- I'd seriously can't even begin to go into words how much it means. Um, you're overseas right now and continuing to do the work, so it means a lot. Um, and I look forward to touching base kind of after the holidays and stuff and really get the ball rolling when the New Year starts. [00:32:39] Excellent. I'm very, very honored to have, uh, spent time with you and the- and I hope that the New Year is going to be a year of justice and healing for Iowa City. [00:32:52] It will be, I think it will be. Okay, have a good dinner. Tell your family hello. Have fun overseas. [LAUGHTER] [00:33:00] Bye-bye. [00:33:03] Bye. Um, okay. Sorry. So, uh, now, [00:33:11] we're gonna move backwards, [00:33:13] um, to agenda item number 7, [00:33:17] um, and this is telling Iowa City's story [00:33:21] by Daniel Posthum- Posthumus. Sorry, if I mess up, if I butcher that last name. Um, and we're gonna kind of do it [00:33:29] in the same format as we did [00:33:30] Eduardo's presentation just because I think that makes the most sense. Um, so we'll have the presentation go first, then open it up to public comment on Zoom, public comment, um, live, and then we'll go to commissioners on Zoom and then commissioners that are live. Um, so, ah, you can start whenever you're ready. [00:33:54] Fantastic. Um, So hello everyone. Thank you so much for having me. Um, it's- you know, as Eduardo said, it's an [00:34:00] honor to be speaking with you doing such groundbreaking and incredibly important work. Um, so first to start off my presentation, uh, just a little about me. So I'm a sophomore at the College of William & Mary in Williamsburg, Virginia, but I've lived most of my life in Japan and that's give me a lot of great perspective on the issue of truth and reconciliation. Um, and I do research for the International Justice Lab at- at William & Mary under the purview of Dr. Zvobgo. And we are a research organization that focuses on transitional justice, specifically truth commissions. And my work in particular has focused on truth commissions, at, um, home here in the United States, which is a really novel thing to study. Um, unfortunately, it shouldn't be so novel. Um, and also in addition to that, right now I'm working on a piece of long-form journalism in partnership with the Pulitzer Center about the Iowa City Truth Commission, um, and that interest was sparked by my scholarly work. So just recently I wrote a paper with Dr. Zvobgo that was published in the International Journal of Transitional Justice called Democratizing Truth: [00:35:00] An Analysis of Truth Commissions in the United States. And this was how I discovered Iowa City. And so what we did was we did something no one else had ever done before. We created a dataset of subnational truth commissions that have happened in the United States and obviously, Iowa City was one of them. And I had this huge long document with all this information about these truth commissions, and every month or two I would go back and there'll be some big update of Iowa City. And I became really fascinated with what was happening, um, because there's something really unique, um, you know, um, as I'm sure, you know, you're living it. Uh, it's incredibly contentious, um, and, you know, it's fascinating to see how, um, it's happening, whereas in a lot of pla- places in the United States, um, people just aren't interested in the truth commissions, they're- they're not getting much traction. So key takeaways from the paper I wrote, um, with Iowa City, Iowa City is not alone, [00:35:54] uh, so the resurgence of the Black Lives Matter movement [00:35:57] after the murder of George Floyd [00:35:59] led to [00:36:00] the proliferation of truth [00:36:01] commissions in the United States [00:36:02] like we've never seen before. So a lot of proposed commissions and then a proposed commissions that never went anywhere, and a lot of subnational commissions, state commissions or city commissions that are doing a lot of great work. Um, and what we're doing is we're waiting for federal action. So there is no federal truth commission, although a bill has been proposed, uh, for a very comprehensive truth commission, the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation, um, but, you know, that bill is nowhere pass, uh, nowhere close to passing, unfortunately. So in the meantime, cities and states have been taking the lead with commissions like the one in Iowa City. California has create- commissioned the Truth and Healing Council. But Iowa City is easily the most contentious of these commissions. And I think it highlights a lot of interesting ideas which I'll talk about in the next slide. And I- uh, the most important idea highlights is that truth commissions are political bodies like anything else and they reflect the political environment they come out of. So I'm working on the piece- this piece of long-form journalism and what makes me [00:37:00] so interested in Iowa City is not just, you know, the drama and- and the human aspect of it, but it- it deals with a lot of big ideas that we're dealing with and- that we've been dealing with since the murder of George Floyd and the biggest one is obviously how can we confront history? Um, so, you know, with the- the- the Unit- with the United States' anti-democratic past and the Jim Crow South, you know, I think all of the racial oppression we've seen in our history, United States has never really had a proper, um, moment of reckoning like a lot of other countries have, where we have had an official process, we'd looked at our history and then attempt to move forward to a new one, and we see that a lot. You know, we see all these new voter suppression laws which is a result, I think, of lack of education about our history, um, and the precedent of those laws rooted in Jim Crow and anti-voting laws for Black Americans, um, and, in general, Americans of color. Um, so what happens when activism comes into conflict with institutions? So this- especially deals with the first part of the Iowa City Commission, uh, where we saw a lot of conflict between more establishment [00:38:00] figures on the commission, [00:38:01] um, and some of the members [00:38:02] of the Iowa Freedom Riders [00:38:03] and their own commission [00:38:04] that they splintered off, um, and how do we maintain the mome- momentum of the Black Lives Matter movement and really more generally, racial progress, um, when it stops doing the lead on primetime news, um, and, you know, in general, energy and motivation from the wider population is lacking, but how do we continue that progress going? Um, and, uh, lastly, kind of one of my- one of the most interesting questions and we're seeing that far right now is, what happens when politics stops being a bad ideas and policy and resorts to its lowest level, which is personal conflict? Um, and I'm writing about the story because I think it's incredibly important story, um, and I think it's something that, uh, all different types of people from all around the country can learn from. And I think that if Iowa City works, if the truth commission works, then I think people can take a lot of hope from it, um, that it can be a model, replicated across the country. So I've- I've been struggling a lot to tell the story, um, because I can't tell it without speaking to as many people as possible. So I wanna [00:39:00] speak to as many of the commissioners as possible about their work, their role in the commission, um, their take on what's happening in Iowa City. Thus far I've only been able to speak with Daphney, Daniel, and Eric Harris, uh, who had been fantastic, um, and it's been a real pleasure and honor speaking with them. Um, so please, please, please, if you're interested in speaking with me, if you feel comfortable in talking about Iowa City, your personal experiences and what- how you hope, um, the commission goes, what are your goals, uh, please get in contact with me, um, my email's there, um, and I think it's also in the agenda of material as well. Um, in addition, this February, I'll be in Iowa City from the 18th to the 20th, um, and I'll be there to do some in-person interviews, some on the groundwork, uh, so I hope to talk to some of you then as well. Um, so also feel free to contact me about my research, um, if you've any questions about that. I'm working on a new paper about truth commission mandates in the United States and how that reflects, um, public opinion as well. Um, so yeah. Thank you so much again for having me. [00:40:00] Um, it's an honor, and thank you. [00:40:05] Okay. Thank you so much, Daniel. Um, I realized that [LAUGHTER] I made a mistake and I forgot to tell you to start sharing your screen. Um, but we have it on our, um, on our packet. So if you're watching online, I'm really sorry. He was following from a screen, um, what are they- PowerPoint screen kind of thing. Um, does anyone from the public on Zoom have any questions, uh, for our presenter? [NOISE] How about anybody here in person? No? All right. Um, and it looks like our panelist, Daphney [00:41:00] has a question, so we'll start with you and then see if anyone else, um, on Zoom has questions, then move on to in here. Go ahead, Commissioner Daniel. [00:41:11] Oh, thank you. Um, thank you so much [00:41:14] for talking to us this evening, Daniel. [00:41:16] Um, I- I hope, um, my fellow commissioners [00:41:20] reach out to you. [00:41:21] Um, I think our work is not only important [00:41:25] for the present time but also for future, [00:41:29] for posterity, um, like- the- the idea [00:41:34] that we are going to reach [00:41:36] the mountain top in two or three years, [00:41:39] it's not, it's- it's probably not realistic. But hopefully, our work will be a, um, will add to the foundation that our forebearers, um, started, and that it makes the, um, goal of racial equality, um, or just general equality closer. So thank [00:42:00] you so much, Daniel. And, um, please, if you haven't already, share any publications or any writing that you do on our commission. [00:42:22] Thank you so much, Daniel. Uh, this is commissioner Rivera, I really appreciate. Um, you're speaking to us and sharing, um, about some of the takeaways. It- it's really nice,um, as, a one-year-old commission, sometimes it's really helpful to get some outside perspective on, um, kind of, what exactly we're doing, um, and, you know, I think that, um, I'm excited and re-energized, um, sort of, to be reminded about how historic the work that we're doing is. Um, I'm just going to request is if you have, um, a copy of the article democratizing truth, and if you can share that with our commission either through, um, [00:43:00] Stephanie or, uh, vice-chair Ali, um, so that can be disseminated to us, so I would really, um, love to read that. Thank you. [00:43:09] Thank you so much. I'll definitely send a copy to Stephanie. Thank you. [00:43:14] Um, so Imma echo my other council members that anything that you publish, um, I would like to see that as well. Um, our story needs to be told, and it needs to be told in the right way. One of the things that, um, well, like first of all, I would encourage, you know, like- like more commissioners to actually, you know, to speak willingly to check out some of his work because I've done it already, and one of the things that impressed me is that, [NOISE], you know, since we started this whole commission, I've done lots of interviews about lots of different issues. Well, what impressed me about this interview is that he already had facts. It wasn't just a person from the media coming to fish, like information. He had facts, he had done his research. He- [00:44:00] he- he asked me like questions [00:44:02] about the execs, [00:44:03] like kinda caught me off guard. I was like, how did you know about that? [00:44:06] You know, and he- [OVERLAPPING]. [00:44:07] He watched the meetings? [00:44:09] Yeah, and he has structured questions, and they were- they were well-structured, and we have a couple of nice conversations, you know, because- it's just because of his questions caught me off guard, and I was like, okay. Well, I wanna ask these questions because it's not just, you know, someone fishing for answers or looking to get an answer and put it into they own words, he already had research that he already done and with that audio. [00:44:39] Yeah, that's actually- that's a really helpful point that you made, um, actually to vouch for Daniel. But I think that that is important to know that we're not just talking to someone like we're normally used to around here. [LAUGHTER] Someone who's actually aware of the facts and has done their research. Yeah. So I'd be more than happy to, [00:45:00] um, chat with you. I'm kind of trying to take a break on this until the new year just so I can like stay sane. [LAUGHTER] But- yeah. I think that a lot of us are definitely willing to have these types of conversations, and maybe we could even arrange, um, like you meeting with two or three of us at the same time or, you know, like the four OG members versus the ones who came in later, things like that. Uh, but yeah, I appreciate your time. Um, does anyone else have any questions or comments for Daniel? [00:45:40] Yes, Daniel. I just have, um, a logistics question. Would you prefer to have, um, as many interviews done with us as possible before you come to Iowa City, or, um, would you like to try to do them here all at once? [00:45:54] Um, either one's perfect. Uh, I would prefer to at least have like preliminary conversations, uh, before I arrive [00:46:00] in Iowa City, uh, so I would have an idea, you know. I only have like two days and a half or so, so I want to, you know, make sure I can focus my efforts. Um, so- but whatever works best with you would be perfect. Thank you so much. [00:46:12] Okay. [00:46:20] He was coming on the 17th, he could come to that meeting. Someone say the meetings right before. The 18th is a Friday, isn't it? Yeah. Um, does anyone else have anything? [00:46:40] All right. Well, that means that we can move on to number 9- agenda item number 9. Um, announcements of commissioners or staff. Uh, just, uh, remember we're not going to engage with one another concerning said announcements. Um, let's start with [00:47:00] our commissioners [00:47:01] that are on Zoom. [00:47:01] Does anyone have any announcements on Zoom? [00:47:09] What about our commissioners here? [00:47:12] Yes. [00:47:16] I want to correct something for public record. On November 2 during our meeting, I did not say that on November 8. [00:47:32] Uh, a group of members in the community [00:47:37] was planning a listening session [00:47:42] on the racist incidents at West High. What I said was on November 8th, the group or community members would plan to listen. [00:48:00] I wanted to correct that for public record. The other thing I want to say, a meeting last week by the same group. [00:48:16] The president of Black Voices Project said she has a left that incident alone, BAC alone, and Black Voices Project will continue concentrating on working with the ICCSD board. I yield. [00:48:46] Anyone else having an announcement? [00:48:52] What about you, Stark? [00:48:53] Uh, just a short one. I had sent out a email earlier this week. Now is the time where a lot [00:49:00] of grants are available from the city. And so if you didn't see it, just if you have an organization business that is interested in applying, just go back and take a look at that email. Um, there's sometimes are, um, um, restrictions if you serve on a city board or commission, and so I think it would just be a good idea if anyone is planning on applying to contact the city attorney, Eric Goers, and just kinda go over the situation, um, with him so that you get the best advice moving forward, um, prior to putting the time into the- the application so. But that's it. Thank you. [00:49:44] Okay. Motion to adjourn. [00:49:49] I'd like to motion to adjourn. [00:49:52] All right. Is that unanimous? [00:49:54] Yeah, it's a record.