The Revere Human Rights Commission held its most recent monthly meeting on Thursday, March 7, in the City Council Chambers and via Zoom. Chairperson Shay Hossaini presided over the meeting that was attended by fellow members Dr. Lourenco Garcia, Molly McGee, Kourou Pich, Fire Chief Chris Bright, and two new members, Herby Jean-Baptiste and Somaya Larousse.
Also on hand for the session was former City Councillor Steve Morabito, who is the city’s new Director of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI).
Garcia presented a recap of the HRC’s activities in the month of February. “It was a successful month,” said Garcia, who noted the celebration of Black History Month that took place at Revere High at the end of February. “It was a wonderful event.”
The commissioners then selected their chair and vice-chair for the coming year, with Hossaini re-elected as chair and Jean-Baptiste as vice-chair.
The commission next took up the introduction for the new members of the current members of its subcommittees (also known as the HRC’s Working Groups): Cultural Events and Celebrations (Hossaini and Bright); Education, Research, and Evaluation (Garcia and McGee); and Community Outreach and Organization (Pich and McGee). Hossaini urged the new members to consider whether they would be interested in joining a working group.
In the open forum portion of the meeting, Morabito urged the commissioners to plan their events for the coming year well in advance. He also discussed compliance issues for the subcommittees relating to the State Open Meeting Law.
Garcia suggested that the commission hold a retreat to plan its calendar for the year ahead. In response to a query from a fellow commissioner about the Open Meeting Law, Garcia said that by calling it a “workshop,” as the schools do for the School Committee members, the commission can “circumvent” the requirements of the Open Meeting Law.
The commissioners concluded the meeting with a discussion about what would constitute meaningful education programs and workshops for the board members themselves, city employees, and the general Revere community.
