SLO mayor: ‘I am committed to creating a city that is more diverse, more equitable and more just’
What happened last week at our City Council meeting was hard and complicated and ultimately, we didn’t get to where we want to go.
Villainizing each other is not how we are going to reimagine public safety most effectively or heal collective trauma.
No doubt — discord must have space.
Righteous rage can be a catalyst for positive change. What happened last week was way outside the bounds of how we try to show up at City Council meetings to meaningfully create that change.
I wish it had been different and I am sorry to all involved that we weren’t able to hold the line for civility and constructive, solution-oriented communication. I am committed to the fight for justice and I appreciate our police leadership and officers being open to this conversation. Personal attacks are against everything I believe in, everything I have tried to build with my own activism, and the civility policy that this council adopted and will enforce.
We are all interconnected. We are all human beings and I hope that we can see each other that way. I reject the binary idea that there are different sides, and instead stand on the side of a love and justice that moves us all toward a better way. We all want to feel safe and heard and that we belong. We all have a stake in this conversation — activists, officers, city leadership and staff and the community at large.
Last week we reviewed the After-Action Report. (The report analyzed police response to a June 1 protest that ended in the use of tear gas.) We heard from the testimonial portion facilitated by Kari Mansager and in public comment the magnitude of the pain and deep hurt that resides in our community. That can be uncomfortable and difficult for us to hear.
Unfortunately, we remain in a reality where we do not equally come to the conversation with the same privileges and responsibility and therefore, engagement on these issues can and will look different for all of us. And I want to acknowledge and hold space for where the pain is coming from.
For some, it is even hard to believe that kind of pain exists in our community. As former police chief Jim Gardner said in his communications to the council today, “these observations are the necessary emotional catharsis this nation is going through as we mutually work to deal with systemic racism and relationships with law enforcement.”
As a council, we continue pushing forward in the long and hard pursuit of progress, building community trust and justice.
The difficulty of this conversation is a symptom of systemic racism and inequities that plague our country and disproportionately impact our Black, Indigenous, and People of Color communities. As such, our efforts to address and disrupt systemic racism as a city remain steadfast. As we increase our awareness of the bigger picture problems, it is also important to recognize the really positive things our entire community and city organization are embracing and to not lose sight of our positive community values.
As your mayor, I am committed to creating a city that is more diverse, more equitable and more just and I believe the same to be true of my council members and our staff, including our police officers.
We cannot do this in a vacuum of only opposition and conflict, but in a collective acknowledgment of shared love and care for this community. It is my hope that we can continue this conversation in a space of intentional introspection, authentic civil discourse and with a collective goal of growth and progress. The cost of anything short of that is too high and jeopardizes our ability to truly hear each other and to achieve our shared goals.
Heidi Harmon is serving her third term as mayor of San Luis Obispo.