Community members sought for new Whatcom Racial Equity Commission
Community members are being sought for the new Whatcom Racial Equity Commission, which was formed in October 2022 to identify and correct bias and injustice across systems such as education, health care, employment and housing.
A total of 15 Whatcom County residents will be appointed to the commission, which eventually will have 31 members, including those from professional fields and tribal and government agencies.
Shu Ling-Zhao, who has been working with former Bellingham City Council member Kristina Michele Martens and the Chuckanut Health Foundation to plan and implement the commission, told The Bellingham Herald that she was overjoyed to see their plan taking another step toward reality.
“It lets us do good an meaningful things in our community,” Zhao told The Herald in an interview Monday.
“It feels good to see what comes next. There’s a lot more work to do,” she said.
The group’s work started amid the 2020 summer of racial justice and activism that followed the murders of George Floyd and other people of color at the hands of police and vigilantes. Former Bellingham Mayor Seth Fleetwood and Whatcom County Executive Satpal Sidhu championed its formation.
Both the Bellingham City Council and the Whatcom County Council are funding the commission under an interlocal agreement.
Applicants will be screened by a committee and then appointed by Sidhu and Bellingham Mayor Kim Lund, with City Council and County Council approval required.
These community members are being urged to apply now, according to a statement from the Chuckanut Health Foundation:
▪ A student living in Whatcom County.
▪ A community member with experience caring for a student attending a Whatcom County public school (such as parent, foster parent, grandparent, caregiver, or guardian).
▪ An immigrant, migrant, or refugee.
▪ A business owner, manager or independent contractor.
▪ A youth or young adult ages 16-24 at the time of appointment.
▪ Two diversity officers or staff members engaged in diversity, equity and inclusion work in educational institutions: one working in local higher education institutions and one working in local K-12 schools.
▪ Two human service providers, including, but not limited to, victim or offender services, housing or houseless services, and mental health services.
▪ One social justice advocate or activist whose area of focus is racial equity.
▪ One representative from a philanthropic organization.
▪ One faith leader.
▪ One multilingual health care provider.
Applications are due by 5 p.m. Feb 29 and are available online or by calling the Chuckanut Health Foundation at 360-671-3349.
This story was originally published February 6, 2024 at 1:00 PM.
