FEBRUARY 04, 2022, KEIZERTIMES, PAGE A7
Keizer Diversity Committee holds first meeting
By JOEY CAPPELLETTI
Of the Keizertimes
When attendees walked into the
Community Diversity Engagement
Committee’s
first
meeting
on
Wednesday, Jan. 25 they were given
statistics. 71% white, 23% Hispanic and
12% multi-racial; statistics that outline
the demographic makeup of the 39,376
people in the city of Keizer according
to the 2020 U.S. census.
Compared to the state as a whole,
Keizer is diverse. The 2020 U.S. census
revealed that since 2010 the white pop-
ulation in Keizer has decreased by 10
percentage points, while the Hispanic,
Asian, Native, Black, Pacific Islander
and multi-racial populations have all
increased.
The Keizer City Council spent over a
year developing the diversity commit-
tee that will work in an advisory role
to the council. In December and early
January, council members appointed
six community members and one high
school student to sit on the committee
and on Jan. 26 they met for the first
time.
The
Diversity
Engagement
Committee wasted no time in shaking
things up, opting to sit in chairs from
the audience assembled into a circle
rather than sitting on the council dais.
“This dais system is not conducive to
community conversations, hence this
situation,” said Keizer City Councilor
Laura Reid, one of the two councilors
that sit on the board.
The new committee began by vot-
ing on leadership, electing Dr. Anthony
Rosilez as chair and Claire Snyder as
vice chair. Rosilez is the executive direc-
tor of the Oregon Teacher Standards
and Practices Commission while
Snyder is a lifelong Keizer-resident and
activist —which she combined to create
and organize Keizer’s first Pride fair.
The majority of the meeting cen-
tered on establishing the committee’s
purpose, as defined by its members,
as well as how to improve community
engagement.
“We can’t do this in these four walls.
I’ll be the first one to step to the micro-
phone and be very honest with you.
We’re gonna have to go out there. It’s
gonna have to be out in the community
and we can go two-by-two, three-by-
three, but it will have to happen,” said
committee member Markey Toombs,
owner of The Chicken Shack in Keizer.
Members favored moving meet-
ings to outside of city hall to a loca-
tion where more community members
would be likely to attend. They opted
to make a decision at the next meeting,
which will take place on March 1 once
again at the city hall. The group invited
community members to speak at the
next meeting with suggested gathering
locations.
The group also discussed what the
committee would be able to accom-
plish within the parameters set by the
council. Bringing in guest speakers,
organizing community events and
reviewing heritage month celebrations
within the city were some of the ideas
discussed.
“Anything that we are looking at
doing should really be centered around
our key purposes, which are how can
we help the council make the best
decisions for the community members
and how can we use our expertise and
our experiences in helping the council
make those decisions,” Rosilez said.
City financial director Tim Wood,
who participated in the meeting, said
one of his main concerns was the scope
of a group with endless opportunity
because “there’s so much that we can
possibly do as a group that we could
spend three, four, five hours together.”
To be set up for success, Woods said
the group should aim for meetings to
be around an hour and a half with time
for public comment.
The committee’s next meeting will
take place at the Keizer City Hall at 6
p.m. on March 1. The agenda will be
available on the city’s website and pub-
lic comment is welcome.
Cats of the Week
The Community Diversity Engagement committee meets in the council chambers on Jan. 25.
Photo by JOEY CAPPELLETTI of Keizertimes
Names:
(L)CHLOE
(R)MICAH
Both Cats
Age: 6 months
HISTORY:
Chloe is a domestic short
hair tabby. Micah is a
domestic Siamese mix.
PREFERRED HOME:
Both cats are very
affectionate and friendly.
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