County board approves Black History Month in split vote
The Marathon County Board of Supervisors on Thursday approved a resolution declaring February as Black History Month, but not without a difficult discussion about race and history.
The resolution passed on a voice vote with, perhaps, a dozen supervisors voting no. Supervisor Bruce Lamont, Wausau, called for a roll call vote on the resolution, but a majority of supervisors voted down this idea.
The Black History Month resolution recounts the troubled history of black Americans, including the periods of slavery and lynching, lists dozens of black historical figures to be remembered and concludes with a call to “move forward with purpose, united tirelessly as a nation indivisible, with liberty and justice for all.”
Wording for the legislation was taken from a resolution authored by U.S. Sen. Cory Booker (D-Md.).
Two supervisors, Arnie Schlei, town of Easton, and Richard Gumz, town of Holton, said they had received calls from constituents opposed to the resolution and indicated they would not support it.
Schlei said he agreed with his constituents that the resolution was based on a premise that was not true to Marathon County.
“I agree with my constituents that there is enough language in the resolution that I don’t feel is true for our community or Marathon County,” he said. “I do not support the implication it is giving to residents of Marathon County.”
Supervisor Gumz, as well, said he had received e-mails in opposition to the resolution and did not think the resolution was needed. The supervisor clarifi ed that he, representing a part of the county with a large Latino population, held no animus toward minorities. “I am not a racist,” he declared. “I feel we are trying to do something that is not necessary.”
Supervisor Lamont attempted to remove from the resolution a phrase reading “the United States began as a divided country” but, again, on a voice vote, his motion failed.
The supervisor argued the nation did not begin as a divided country, but, being a place to find religious liberty, started as the United States of America.
Other supervisors supported the language of the resolution.
Supervisor Jeff Johnson, Wausau, said black people at the time of the nation’s founding were slaves, had no right to vote and that this left the country divided.
“We do have to recognize that at the founding of this country a lot of the folks living here had no rights,” he said. “They were slaves. We were inherently and by definition divided at that time.” Supervisors argued that taking up a Black History Month resolution did not accomplish anything and only opened the door for further symbolic legislation.
Supervisor Kelley Gabor, Wausau, asked if the county was obligated to pass resolutions celebrating every ethnic group in the county. She said something could be done for her ethnic group, the Italians. “Where’s it going to end?” she asked.
Diversity Affairs Committee chairman Yee Leng Xiong, Weston, said, however, that resolutions, such as the Black History Month proposal, were “not just words” to minorities facing discrimination but, instead, were important signals to say that these people belong in the community.
“These resolutions reaffirm they are welcome in the county,” he said. “These resolutions mean a lot to people of color. They mean everything.”
Supervisor William Harris, Wausau, said it was “very disheartening” to hear supervisors oppose a Black History Month proclamation routinely endorsed by the federal government and many state legislatures and municipal councils.
“I don’t see why Black History Month should be controversial,” he said.
Harris said voting down a Black History Month resolution would “send a bad message” and to himself, a black man, would amount “almost to a slap in the face.”
The supervisor said supervisors needed to represent their constituents, but also they had to take the county in the right direction.
“Part of your job is to be a leader,” he said. “As an elected leader, you get to decide which direction you want to lead this county. Do you want to lead this county in the direction of unity, one that embraces people, or do you want to give way to our worst angels and instincts?”
William Harris
