CAPE ELIZABETH — The town’s ad-hoc Civil Rights Committee could become a permanent standing body known as the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee that seeks to educate the community.

Melanie Thomas and Keyla Alston-Griffin, co-chairs of the Civil Rights Committee, presented a recommendation April 12 to the town council. The request is for Cape Elizabeth to create a standing committee that would promote diversity, equity and inclusion, review town council policies while providing recommendations when needed and encourage town participation.

The committee has been meeting since September of 2020, Thomas said.

“Right now the Civil Rights Committee is not permanent, but we unanimously believe it should be,” Thomas said. “We’ve had many discussions of what the work of the standing committee should look like.”

Thomas said the committee would organize ways Cape Elizabeth residents could participate in engagement and educational outreach projects, including a 21-day anti-racism challenge, a sister city partnership with another municipality and community conversations.

“It is so important to get our community involved,” Thomas said. “We are making a proposal for you to approve us doing a 21 anti-racism challenge, which is a great way to get the community learning and processing at the same time. Also, sister city, which is a great way to partner with another local town or out-of-state city or first nations community, where both communities can learn and share.”

Freeport residents started the 21-day racism challenge during the Martin Luther King Jr. Day, Thomas said. There were over 300 participants between three surrounding towns.

“I, myself, did the 21-day challenge with them and I learned a lot, and I’m encouraged to bring that here to Cape and get approval from the town council to do that so we can get the community involved,” Thomas said. “It would be every day, just reading something, a pod, educational piece, could be a poem, just learning about racism, about races, race, race relations many of the things we’ve talked about with our definitions and educating people that just don’t even know too much.”

The committee developed framework in order to review town policies and provide recommendations as needed, looking at a policy’s strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats, Thomas said.

Councilors said they supported the committee’s work, and the ordinance committee will review the proposal to create a standing Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee.

“I’m really grateful for the work you all have done on this broad, but very important topic,” said councilor Jamie Garvin. “And I’m glad that we, as a committee, are focusing more on it … so thank you for all of that effort. It’s invaluable.”

The Civil Rights Committee consists of seven members, a student member and non-voting councilor Valerie Deveraux.

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