In the 2020 Onondaga County budget, County Executive Ryan McMahon proposed creating the Office of Diversity and Inclusion. The office will combine the Commission on Human Rights and the Purchasing Division’s Compliance Office, with some added staffers.

This new office, while important, isn’t enough to combat the lack of diversity in Onondaga County government by itself.

According to David Knapp, Chairman of the Onondaga County Legislature, the percentage of the county workforce that are minorities is in the teens. Peggy Chase, another member of the legislature, quoted the figure to be as little as 13%. This office will help bring that number to the county’s goal of 22% by 2020, Knapp said.

But that is still significantly less than the 33.4% of the county’s population that is nonwhite, according to a 2018 U.S. Census Bureau estimate.

Linda Ervin, the minority leader in the Onondaga County Legislature who represents parts of the Syracuse University campus in the 17th District, proposed the idea for the office to McMahon along with fellow legislator Monica Williams.

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“It was a collaborative thing,” Ervin said. “We went to the County Executive a while ago, and he agreed. That’s how it all got started.” Ervin said.

The Office of Diversity and Inclusion will take over the responsibilities of the CHR, while also expanding diversity programs in the county. Chase represents the majority of SU’s campus in the 9th district of the legislature.

“I think right now, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion, besides handling the things that the Human Rights Commission is set up to do, will also be to make sure that people … are offered an opportunity to have the jobs that are out there,” Chase said.

The CHR currently promotes understanding and acceptance of diversity and to reduce conditions that can lead to discrimination. What is unclear with this budget is what will change about the CHR’s work when it transforms into the ODI.

This new office, while it will house new staff and allow closer work with the Compliance Office, as McMahon states, will be doing work already done by the CHR. The CHR already handles all Title VI policies for the county, which forbids racial discrimination as part of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, and oversees the Jail Oversight Committee.

The commission also teaches numerous courses on diversity education for county staff and the public. This year alone, CHR will hold a total of 12 workshops focused on “Welcoming Diversity / Building Effective Relations in a Diverse Community” in partnership with the National Coalition Building Institute.

“It’s a good thing to be able to recognize the fact that there are people that are discriminated against, and as a county we try everything we can to make sure that everybody gets a fair chance,” Chase said.

According to Ervin, diversity training will expand under the ODI, and at least three new staffers will be added.

Diversity training is a good step to foster a more inclusive and diverse environment. These training workshops, in addition to other diversity and awareness programs, can help foster a more welcoming environment in Onondaga County, in addition to additional minority hiring efforts.

“You can’t make decisions for others,” Ervin said. “You have no idea what works for them. Making sure that we have people that work for the county who have had those experiences, both racial and economic, is important.”

The ODI is clearly a step in the right direction towards increased diversity in the Onondaga County government and Syracuse community, but more needs to be done to ensure that minorities can feel safe, welcome and at home in Onondaga County. The county’s 22% minority staffing goal is not high enough, and more must be done to ensure that even that is achieved.

“It’s kind of sad that we have to develop a department to get this done,” Chase said. “It’s only fair to the people that are living here, that they be able to take advantage of the opportunities that are here.”

 Diversity is an ultimate good for all parties, especially in democratic government. The efforts of Executive McMahon in his 2020 budget show that he understands that and is making strides towards the county’s goal of a more representative governing body. But more drastic action is necessary.

 

Nick Robertson is a freshman news and online journalism and policy studies major. His column appears bi-weekly. He can be reached at njrobert@syr.edu. He can be followed on Twitter at @NickRobertsonSU.

Published on October 14, 2019 at 12:24 am

Contact Nick: nickrobertson@dailyorange.com | @NickRobertsonSU