A group of white progressives are challenging members of the Durham Board of County Commissioners to take a more active role in addressing systemic racism. “An Open Letter to Durham’s White Progressives” came after Durham Mayor Pro Tem Jillian Johnson warned white people about conversations she argues uses race as a political tactic (Rev-elution: Durham Mayor Pro Tem Jillian Johnson's warning to white people: Don't listen to "those" Black People (rev-elution.blogspot.com)
Below is the open letter:
An Open Letter to Durham’s White Progressives
There is much to be celebrated about this week’s installation of Durham’s first all-female Board of County Commissioners (BOCC). We welcome this new leadership at the county level and look forward to the positive changes and new initiatives that this Board implements. At the same time, we must speak out about the ways that racism has continued to operate even in this promising opportunity, specifically with the selection of the BOCC’s Chair and Vice Chair. The BOCC has been criticized for how it handled the complaints raised earlier this year by County Manager Wendell Davis. Commissioners Heidi Carter and Wendy Jacobs (both re-elected to the BOCC) responded weakly and harmfully not only to the complaints, but also to the community voices that tried to hold them accountable to the introspection and change that would be the best response to the powerful community engagement generated around County Manager Davis’ letter. Commissioner Jacobs’ actions to potentially put into practice the anti-racism values that she professes have not been demonstrated, and her refusal to entertain the idea of not accepting the position of BOCC Vice Chair, in favor of a Commissioner of Color, perpetuates the racist power hoarding that is regularly seen with white people in powerful positions, even among progressive white people.
There have been claims that the accusations of racism were “political.” These claims seek to divert the conversation away from the apparent racism that played a role in these situations and could themselves be manifestations of racism - unfairly asserting that people should not be “political” in politics. The truth is that our political systems were designed under the same white supremacist culture that built this nation, as well as every system in it. No one can remove systemic racism from the current system of politics. What has happened in these situations is both political and racist.
Attempting to build open, transparent, and trusting relationships between our government representatives, government employees, and the local community they represent is critical to bettering our democracy. Instead, we have witnessed the white leadership in both the Durham City and County governments, at various times, not only fail to do what community members have asked but also commit racial harms that have damaged relationships with the community and staff members.
Earlier this year, Durham community members (mostly Black, along with some white and other People of Color) expressed concerns regarding the white members of the Durham BOCC’s history of racist behaviors and language used by white commissioners against Black staff members, specifically those words and actions from Commissioner Carter to County Manager Davis. The consequences of challenging racism resulted in an anonymous complaint being filed with the International City/County Management Association (ICMA); the ethics committee of the ICMA later cleared County Manager Davis of misconduct in the six concerns alleged by the anonymous complainant. In addition, there was an independent investigation conducted by James Coleman (a local attorney) at a cost to the County of $29,393. Coleman’s report (https://dig.abclocal.go.com/wtvd/docs/FINAL_Complaint_against_Wendell.pdf) found that, although he did not think Commissioner Carter’s remarks were racially motivated, he did see how both County Manager Davis and the County staff could have perceived them to be, especially because of fractured relationships between county staff and the BOCC (under the leadership of Commissioner Wendy Jacobs). The subsequent lack of apology from Commissioner Jacobs and lack of accountability from Commissioner Carter leaves the community at large wondering just how specifically these two elected officials will change their behavior to “make things better.”
This week, with the new Commissioners being sworn in, there was an opportunity for racial healing. While we are aware that race is not the only important factor in these decisions and there is a process in place for the BOCC to elect their leadership, we are also aware there is a lot of repair work to be done. Some community leaders in Durham – namely among them from SpiritHouse and the Durham Committee on the Affairs of Black People – encouraged their communities' members to advocate that the BOCC members support Commissioner Brenda Howerton as Chair and Commissioner Nimasheena Burns (who received the highest vote count in the recent election of Commissioners) as Vice Chair. This change in leadership was sought to make steps towards healing the racial divide that has been growing between the white Commissioners and the County staff and Black community. Commissioner Howerton was voted in unanimously to be Chair, Commissioner Jacobs was nominated for Vice Chair by Commissioner Nida Allam, and voted in by Commissioners Allam, Carter, and Jacobs; Commissioners Howerton and Burns voted no.
While we are deeply disappointed in the missed opportunity to heal the divide that voting for Black women as both Chair and Vice Chair could have provided, we are hopeful that the BOCC will take immediate, race-informed steps to rebuild the trust of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) residents of our city. As white anti-racist progressives ourselves, we call on the BOCC white members to sincerely embrace principles of anti-racism in their work as elected officials and to strive towards a new vision for our community where everyone not only survives, but thrives.
We call on white leaders at the County and City levels to be transparent with how they are using their positions of power to align with and follow the BIPOC leadership’s ideas and actions. We also call on the white progressive community of Durham to become more vocal and active about the ways that racism is showing up in the County and City, hold the BOCC accountable to responding to and serving communities of Color, and prioritize operationalizing anti-racism in their procedures, policy work, and representation in committees, work groups, and task forces.
We believe that this work can begin through disrupting the stronghold on power that white progressives have in Durham by asking different questions. Instead of focusing on whether we are racist or not, what if we focused on how we are perpetuating racism? Instead of holding on to the power that we have become accustomed to wielding, what if we intentionally transferred that power to our neighbors and colleagues who have been, and continue to be, marginalized? Instead of congratulating ourselves for being progressive, “woke” allies to BIPOC (although usually only if they agree with and do not challenge us), what if we committed to the lifelong journey toward becoming accomplices in the fight to dismantle white supremacy? Instead of expecting all BIPOC community members to agree on the best next steps for Durham, what if we listened to the voices of those who are experiencing the most harm and have the least power? Remember, we as white people are not a monolith; and our BIPOC neighbors are not a monolith either.
As white progressives, we tend to think we know what is best for our “underprivileged” neighbors, but what if we looked to those most impacted by racism for solutions? We have been socialized to think that our way is the “right” way and because we have good intentions, our actions will only result in good impacts, but what if we challenged our own assumptions? While there is nothing in white supremacy culture that requires or even encourages us to be accountable to our neighbors of Color, we must intentionally choose to do so to be anti-racist. We tend to think that our BIPOC neighbors need us, but in reality, we need them! In seeking out anti-racist accomplices, we must first accept that their willingness to hold us accountable is a gift we must not take for granted. And as white-identified people in a society with racism in its DNA, we must also learn to hold each other accountable and to put aside counterproductive defensiveness.
In developing structures of accountability, we must first do some personal soul searching. Are we committed to developing relationships across lines of race, class, and privilege based on mutual respect and accountability? Are we willing to ask our accountability partners for the benefit of the doubt while accepting the truths we may not want to hear? Are we committed to leveraging our privilege and resources to help them move into positions of leadership and power while stepping back into supportive roles? Are we willing to follow their leadership while doing the heavy lifting and grunt work to dismantle systems of oppression?
As the white members of the Organizing Against Racism Durham Leadership team and current and former coordinators of its Durham White Anti-Racist Caucus, we do not expect all BIPOC in Durham to agree on the best policies and strategies for dismantling racism. We continue to listen closely to people most impacted by racism and poverty in Durham and apply a power analysis to the policies, practices, and procedures in our community. We believe that if we want to dismantle racism, we must recognize and wrestle with our internalized white supremacy, learn to adjust with our changing selves, and to step into the power we each have to bring about change – all while working in solidarity with and with guidance from BIPOC. With each conversation and each struggle amongst ourselves, as white folks in Durham, to recognize the ways in which we have been conditioned in our racialized society that we are somehow ‘better than’ anyone else, we are taking one more step to dismantling racism. Therefore, we invite white community members of Durham, regardless of ideology, to engage in this conversation with us and help us in the movement to dismantle racism here in our city, starting with this call of action to holding our elected officials accountable for the decisions made to uphold characteristics of white supremacy over the voice of their constituents. Contact us at durham.white.caucus@gmail.com to learn more about what we are doing and how you can be a part of it.
Sincerely,
Cathy Rimer-Surles
Dan McKinney
Rachel Berthiaume
Kathy Krahenbuhl
Kelli Raker
Laura Webb
Rachael Gigliotti
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