It was a dramatic moment last November when four of the five members of Durango's Community Relations Commission resigned.
In a November letter from the commission to the city, members said they didn’t feel “valued, seen, treated as equals, or respected as professionals in senior positions in our respective justice fields.”
Seven months later, the city hasn't reformed the commission. City officials said last year they wanted to include Fort Lewis College, La Plata County, and the 9-R school district.
But in a recent interview, Durango Mayor Melissa Youssef said the city would decide the future of the Community Relations Commission. Stakeholders met recently for a private networking session. But Youssef said the meeting members didn't discuss forming a new commission.
“That has yet to get off the ground. We're still hoping to have those discussions, but I'm not certain,” said Youssef. “We're still working, but we're basically still in the same position that we were at. We've had no public discussions about it further.”
Olivia de Pablo Lopez is the sole remaining member of the city’s now-defunct Community Relations Commission. She hasn't been invited to private discussions on addressing diversity issues in La Plata County, and she's expressed frustration about the city’s lack of action since last November.
“I have not heard anything from anyone,” said de Pablo-Lopez. “I’m not surprised that the Community Relations Commission is not a top priority. That’s the story of our lives as underrepresented communities. That’s how we typically feel and get marginalized. That’s part of the perpetration.”
There won't be any public discussion about the city’s efforts to address diversity issues for the foreseeable future. The regional networking group holds meetings every few months, but it's closed to the public and media.
