Wethersfield Is Forming A Social Justice Coalition

From the Town of Wethersfield:

July 9, 2020

The Town of Wethersfield is proud to announce the formation of a Social Justice Coalition (SJC) to assist the community in addressing issues of equity, diversity, cultural responsiveness, access and support, among other issues that fall under the larger umbrella of Social Justice. These are national, state and local issues and are certainly not specific only to Wethersfield.

Our goal, as a supportive and caring community, is to address those issues listed above within the context of our society and community. In order to create a comprehensive dialogue, the Board of Education (BOE) is collaborating with the Town and has retained the State Education Resource Center (SERC) as a partner to provide technical assistance and to facilitate shared learning experiences over a multi-year period.

In order to create structures that will result in significant and sustainable change, it is necessary to work deliberately and intentionally while resisting quick fixes that appear all too often when discussing social justice issues. Bringing together individuals from different backgrounds and experiences, race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexual orientation, role in community or other status, is important for an eventful discussion. Our success is dependent upon community-wide input. It is our belief that the Town-wide collaborative approach of a Social Justice Coalition will result in much needed conversations and result in sustained change for Wethersfield.

Participation in the Social Justice Coalition (SJC) is open to Wethersfield residents and business representatives. We are encouraging involvement from a diverse group of stakeholders. To aid in the coordination and formation of the SJC, the Town and BOE have established a diverse Steering Committee. The Steering Committee will work on setting initial dates and provide guidance to bring the SJC together for the first meeting. Since change, education, and understanding is made up of many moving parts, it is envisioned that the SJC will breakdown into a subcommittee structure. Representatives from each subcommittee will form a larger Leadership Committee to bring forward ideas and concerns of the subcommittee and work with the Steering Committee. The process has just started and there is a good deal of work to accomplish.

The Steering Committee will meet beginning in July and continue through August to align resources and establish dates. We anticipate the first town-wide meeting for interested participants to be in September. The Steering Committee will provide regular status up-dates prior to September to ensure open communication. Once the Steering Committee meets, they will be issuing an invitation to the community to create the SJC.

We look forward to your participation.

This press release was produced by the Town of Wethersfield. The views expressed are the author's own.