In the Zoom Where it Happened

What a week.

Tuesday night, during an epic 9-hour meeting, the Madison Common Council passed historic legislation. Years in the making and by a near-unanimous vote, Council took bold steps to advance police accountability by establishing a Community Oversight Board and the hiring of an Independent Monitor.

This should have been cause for celebration, the culmination of thousands of hours of community engagement, research and study, the impetus for which were the tragic deaths of Tony Robinson, Paul Heenan and others at the hands of Madison Police.

Instead, due to an egregious breach of conduct, we were left with confusion, pain and sadness. A male individual, presumably a fellow Alder, uttered a misogynistic slur into an unmuted mic at the Zoom meeting, a comment clearly directed to community activist Shadyra Kilfoy-Flores, just as she was introduced by the Mayor to testify.

Stunned by what happened, I joined 13 of my fellow Alders in an open letter to the public regarding this incident. We sent this letter to offer a public apology to Ms. Kilfoy-Flores and to state our commitment to resolving this matter in a positive manner.  

We cannot paper this over. For this to be resolved, the truth must come out.  

The person responsible needs to step forward so that healing can begin.

If the responsible party refuses, the City should embark on a thorough investigation, including the use of forensic analysis of the Zoom recording to determine who is at fault.  If we wish to move forward in a positive manner, we must know the truth.

Without truth, there can be no healing, there can be no reconciliation.

We have had our share of tense moments over the past year dealing with controversial topics. As with any legislative body, sometimes feelings get hurt, but we generally manage to treat each other and the public with respect. 

What happened Tuesday night is a different matter altogether and must be dealt with separately.

To suggest a lack of civility among Council members somehow explains what happened Tuesday night deflects from the seriousness of the offense. To stand up a false predicate is to engage in gaslighting and does little to move us forward.

Instead, all Alders and the Mayor must commit ourselves unequivocally to the truth.

Only then will healing be possible.

Take care and stay safe.

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