People clap during a demonstration and march around Iowa City on June 6, 2020. People gathered to share stories and educate others about racism before marching around downtown Iowa City and observing a moment of silence in honor of George Floyd. (The Gazette)
The Gazette offers audio versions of articles using Instaread. Some words may be mispronounced.
IOWA CITY — The Iowa City Council has denied a request from the Truth and Reconciliation Commission to extend the life of the commission to June 30, 2025 to allow for more time to complete a final report and recommendations.
The commission, which was established in the fall of 2020 to foster community conversations and encourage restorative justice after the murder of George Floyd by Minneapolis police, was set to end its work and dissolve Dec. 31, a deadline that had twice been extended.
While the council denied the request for extension — in a unanimous vote at its Tuesday meeting — council members said they will allow the hiring of an outside consultant to work beyond the commission’s end date and into 2025. The commission said it has identified a consultant, but has not officially contracted them.
The final report and recommendations to the city council, which the commission estimates could take months to complete, is the last part of the commission’s work. A deadline for the report, and compensation, will be finalized once a contract is signed with the consultant.
Council supports final report, not commission extension
All council members present at Tuesday’s meeting voiced their support to have a final report compiling the work of the commission.
However, since the commission has no work planned beyond the final report, council members said they felt an extension of the commission wasn’t necessary.
“I fully want to see that final report and for council to have that … because that is the last step, extending the TRC I won’t support at this time,” Mayor Bruce Teague said at Tuesday’s council meeting.
Teague said the commissioners still would be invited to work on the final report with the outside consultant even though the formal commission will no longer be meeting after Dec. 31.
“I could see a lot of benefit to having the end of the formal commission and the opportunity to then have the report and recommendations written from that perspective that the commission existed in this time, in this place, in these circumstances and from that these are the policy recommendations and also memorializing the work of the commission,” said council member Laura Bergus.
Commission looks to finalize recommendations to council
The commission’s road to its final report has not been a smooth one.
Numerous commissioners have resigned, others wanted to be paid for their work, and discussions have been ongoing about the future of the commission.
Despite that, the current commissioners say they want to ensure that all the work done in past years is honored in the final report.
“We’re getting to the final stages and we recognize that as much effort as the commissioners have put into this we are limited in our ability to actually write this report, especially at the caliber that we would like to present for the city of Iowa City,” said Lauren Merritt, vice chair of the commission.
The original resolution called for the final report to include a collection of community stories in various forms of media; recommendations on new social practices and celebrations encouraging community harmony; recommendations for institutional and policy reforms to combat systemic racism; measures to limit social disparities in power; and a recommendation on how the commission should continue.
Commissioners have said the original charge of the commission will provide a helpful framework as recommendations are finalized.
Some of the preliminary ideas from the commission include having a city employee work on racial injustice issues and work more closely with nonprofits in the community.
Comments: [email protected]
