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HomeMy WebLinkAbout04/03/1990 MAPLEWOOD HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION AGENDA April 3, 1990 Maplewood City Hall Call to Order r 1A Ctrct, Sotu,W tit, Karla V. Sand Approval of Minutes Carol Engel Old Business Annual Report / i,olurattu,' Commission 1990 Goals tiC �r�bt _ u � , Education Outreach - *' 131414, . Committees Comission 1990 Activities Essay Contest Human Rights Award Reports MN League of Human Rights Commissions Pat Williamson liaauX Grievances Seniors and Others with Special Living Needs Scott Rostron City of Maplewood ummia11441c4 %4 Gretchen Maglich New Business y) Saint Adjourn Next meeting )4-4\1 1ky►n MINUTES MAPLEWOOD HUMAN RELATIONS COMMISSION Tuesday, March 6, 1990 7: 00 P.M. Maplewood City Hall Absentees: Attendees: Scott Rostron Sr . Claire Lynch Paul Sand Pat Williamson Karla Sand Mike McGuire Dawn Vassar Gretchen Maglich Carol Engel I . MINUTES--M/S/A/ the minutes of the February 6, 1990 meeting. II . OLD BUSINESS A. Scott asked for imput on the draft of an article to be submitted to the Maplewood Review. The article deals with the Americans with Disabilities Act currently being considered by Congress. III .NEW BUSINESS--none. IV. REPORTS A. Pat and Karla reported on the recent League meeting. Karla has been elected vice president and conference chair . A small article on Pat Svendsen appeared in the League newsletter . They shared the draft of a League brochure on how to help people who have been victims of bias, harrassment, etc. B. Dawn reported on her calls to the schools re: Black History Month. She talked with administrative staff at Tartan, North, John Glenn, Maplewood, anddrWeaver . The principals stated that most p 9 dShe n that area were centered on Martin Luther King day. asked them to contact Kent Hughes at the Maplewood Review if they were observing Black History Month.a Theter to he principal at John Glenn did follow-up Hughes addressed to city hall . An item has been placed in our new "tickler" file so that we may address this topic in a more timely matter next year . sion C. noemor�enHRCdistriutd new brochueres. InothesfutureoouerrThere annual report will be used for this purpose. D. Grievances ---Karla will refer the grievance from the pregnant woman fired by Sears back to the state. ---Pat reported that the fire chief and the applicant to the department were scheduled to meet with each other . She will follow-up. • V.` WORKING SESSION A. Committee Structure/Purpose--We discussed forming a single vs. multiple commitees and our purpose in doing so. We also discussed the Commission defining goals and finding people to implement them vs. letting committee members set their own direction under Commission supervision. In view of the fact that several of us felt that we should first focus on education, Scott suggested that we have a one hour planning session on outreach to the schools and invite our three existing committee members. It was decided that we should use this spring to lay the groundwork for next fall re: outreach to the schools. B. Goals and Objectives for 1990-- There was general discussion on this topic with several ideas incorporated into the 1989 annual report. C. Human Rights Breakfasts--Tabled until a future meeting. D. Annual Report to the City--Appendix "C" and the 1989 calendar were deleted from the draft of the annual report. 1990 calendar and goals and objectives were revised. MEMORANDUM TO: Members of the Human Relations Commission FROM: Gretchen Maglich RE: INCIDENT AT JOHN GLENN MIDDLE SCHOOL DATE: April 3, 1990 Last Thursday, March 29th, the Maplewood Police Department dispersed a crowd of junior high and high school students that had assembled across the street from John Glenn Middle School at County Road B and Hazelwood. Five students were taken in for questioning and later released to their parents. The St. Paul Pioneer Press published the story the following day, Friday, March 30th, and reported it as being racially motivated (copy attached) . Based on the police officers' reports, Chief Ken Collins stated that the article was misleading and exaggerated. Per Collins, two junior high school students (one black, one white) were upset about their relationship with the same young woman. They scheduled a "fight" to settle their differences and invited several of their older friends to accompany them. When school officials heard about the event, the Maplewood Police were called, and the crowd was quickly dispersed. Both the school officials and the police were satisfied with the manner in which it was handled. The newspaper article makes reference to "skinheads" . Chief Collins stated that an older young man (post high school ) who identifies himself as a skinhead was part of the assembly and was later arrested for activity unrelated to the school event. GBM:kas FRIDAY,MARCH 30,1990 SAINT PAUL PI( Police defuse potential fisticuffs between black, gMaplewoodwhite teen-a ers in hearing rumors that a large group About 40 white teen-agers and Police converged at John Glenn of area high school students were five black teen-agers showed up at Middle School in Maplewood on going to gather at the school in the the apartment complex between 2 Thursday afternoon to prevent an afternoon. p.m. and 2:30 p.m., before police in- expected fight between a large Klinkerfeus declined to comment tervened,the students said. group of black and white high school on whether the conflict was racially students. motivated, but several middle The feuding boys were allegedly No fight occurred and there were school students said it began several escorted home by middle school of- no injuries. days ago with a feud between two ficials earlier in the day in an effort Police, called by school officials, middle school boys, one black and to head off trouble, according to peacefully dispersed the crowd and one white. some students. Klinkerfeus declined took several students to police head- The antagonists set Thursday to to comment on the report and said quarters for questioning, said Sgt. fight outside an apartment complex no middle school student was in- Carol Nelson. She said she did not across the street from the school at volved in the gathering. know whether any of the juveniles Ramsey County Road B and Hazel- A rumor that some of the high were arrested. wood Street,and each threatened to school students were white supre- Principal F.B. Klinkerfeus said bring older high school friends and macist "skinheads" was not true, administrators called police after relatives,several students said. several students said.