Creating a City of Spokane Office of Civil Rights, Equity and Inclusion

The GSP Office of Civil Rights, Equity and Inclusion (OCREI) Workgroup, made up of predominantly BIPOC led organizations, has worked since 2018 to develop a community proposal for our local vision for this Office, and mobilize our community to take action. The Spokane Human Rights Commission passed a resolution in November 2021 calling on the City Council to fund the community proposal for a multifaceted and fully staffed City of Spokane OCREI in the 2022 City of Spokane budget. Thanks to the collective work of this coalition and the strong urging of the community, the City Council on December 13 2021 voted 7-0 to establish an OCREI, and the Council approved the 2022 budget (with a vote of 6-1) to fund three positions to create the Office.