Dedham To Host Virtual Public Event 'Courageous Conversations About Race In Dedham' On May 3

Press release from the Town of Dedham:

April 16, 2021

DEDHAM, MASS. – On Monday, May 3, the Town of Dedham, the Select Board, and the Human Rights Commission (HRC) will be co-hosting “Courageous Conversations About Race in Dedham”, a community event about race and ethnicity.

WHEN: Monday, May 3, 2021 at 7:00 p.m.

WHERE: Zoom (Virtual Meeting) – Register to attend using this link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEocuyqrTgpGtyOK0PrGZ2pKf_VQLmwS6Bk

Designed to be the start of ongoing, productive conversations, this event will be moderated by Colette Phillips, President and CEO of Colette Phillips, Communications, Inc. Named Boston’s Great Connector by Boston Magazine, the recipient of the Boston Business Journal’s Lifetime Achievement Award for Diversity, and one of the Boston Herald’s 100 Most Powerful People in Boston, Colette is one of the most experienced and respected facilitators of racial discussions here in Massachusetts. Specializing in strategic public relations, and diversity and inclusion communications, Colette and her team have helped companies and teams across all sectors build cross-cultural connections through engagement and by stepping outside of their comfort zones.

“This forum represents an opportunity for individuals in Dedham to listen and learn from each other and have conversations about an important topic in our nation and our town,” said Select Board Chair Dennis Teehan.

This virtual community event will be hosted on Zoom and will include a panel of speakers who will coordinate breakout sessions for more in-depth discussions. Breakout sessions will be separated into topics that are reflective of the community where the Town and members of Dedham can take action to achieve productive race and ethnic relations. Breakout session topics include Town/Government, Education, Public Safety, and HRC/Community General Discussion.

“We recognize the important roles that race and ethnicity have played, and continue to play in our Town, country, and in the world, at-large,” said HRC Chairman Joseph Borsellino. “We embrace and celebrate both our uniqueness and our common humanity melded together by a commitment to one country shared equally by all.”

As the event moderator, Colette will welcome everyone in attendance, introduce herself to the community, and explain how she can be a resource to us as we come together to take this step on this path toward building sustainable and collaborative relationships.

At the start of the event, the panelists will introduce themselves and provide brief remarks about their role in Dedham and their commitment to building an inclusive future together. The panel will include:

• Chief of Police, Michael D’Entremont
• Town Manager, Leon Goodwin
• Select Board Vice Chair, Dimitria Sullivan
• School Committee member, Victor Hebert
• Human Rights Commission Chair, Joseph Borsellino
• Asian American resident, Philjay Solar
• Jewish American resident, James Kaufman
• African American resident, Tracey Franklin
• Latinx American resident, Claudio Fierra

During the breakout sessions, participants will take part in open conversations and work together to produce recommendations as to what actions Dedham can take to best achieve productive race and ethnic relations in our Town. Through these discussions and with the guidance and help of Colette, both residents and Town government can take ownership of these recommendations and discuss the plans for implementation and collaborative steps forward.

All are welcome to attend. If you are interested, please register using this link: https://zoom.us/meeting/register/tJEocuyqrTgpGtyOK0PrGZ2pKf_VQLmwS6Bk. To review the event program, please visit the event listing on the Town Calendar.

We ask that you register for this event to assist us in planning and organizing the program. The deadline to register for this event is 4:00 p.m. on Monday, May 3.

This press release was produced by the Town of Dedham. The views expressed here are the author’s own.