Objective: Bring Awareness to Cedarburg's Diversity Commitee

The objective of this initiative is to bring awareness to the community about the Cedarburg Diversity Commitee (aka Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commitee) and recommended action.

Update 9/7/2023 

No update.  Continue to monitor activity.

Update 8/10/2023

The City of Cedarburg updated the website.  Per the information below, we noted that in July of 2020 a Diversity Commitee was established per Ordinance 2020-10; however, somewhere along the line, the website/mission was changed to the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commitee.  The members of the Diversity Commitee were pushing to officially change the name of the committee from the Diversity Commitee to the Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Commitee.  Last week the original URL link to the Diversity Commitee was removed (i.e. Page Not Found) and a new page was created.  

You will notice:

• The name of the committee is back to the Diversity Committee. 
• The DEI mission statement has been removed.
• References implying systemic racism has been removed.
• The updated purpose/mission of the committee seems to be more in line with a "welcoming committee" or "inclusion committee".
• There is still a hint of "forced" diversity vs. celebrating and accepting diversity.  This needs to be monitored because forced diversity is synonymous with equity.

It is important to continue to monitor all aspects of our local government and you should continue to do so.  Thank you everyone for all the feedback and information you provided.

Next Cedarburg Common Council meeting August 14, 2023.  

DEI is Dead

Only a few years ago Diversity, Equity and Inclusion was the rage.  Businesses, schools and other institutions were hiring DEI directors and implementing programs at an alarming rate. Now, the trend is moving in the opposite direction.  All you need to do is search "DEI is dead" and you will find an abundance of articles and studies showing why this political doctrine is dying.  The bottom line is that DEI is racist at its core and divisive in nature, so it doesn't work. Recent US Supreme court rulings such as the end of affirmative action in college admission only accelerate this positive trend.    

Background Information

• The Diversity Committee was formed in July 2020 via Ordinance 2020-10, executed by Mayor Michael O'Keefe. 
• The vote for the Diversity Committee was taken during the July 13, 2020 Common Council meeting.
• In Ordinance 2020-10, it states that "Membership to the Diversity Committee shall consist of one (1) Council Member and six (6) citizens of the City of Cedarburg who shall be appointed by the Mayor, and subject to confirmation by the Common Council". 
• The Diversity Committee's mission/vision statement indicates they want to eliminate systemic racism from Cedarburg.
• The members of the Diversity Committee are requesting to change the name to the "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee." 
• DEI is very similar to affirmative action, which was deemed unconstitutional. 

Questions

• Why are all the members of the "Diversity Committee" known left-wing activists in Cedarburg?  
• Should there be a political activist committee on the City of Cedarburg governing body?
• Per the ordinance, the name of the committee is the "Diversity Committee."  Why then is the name used in the mission statement on the City of Cedarburg website the "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee?"
• Who changed the name from the "Diversity Committee" to the "Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee" on the city website?  Was this approved by the Common Council?
• Why do they want to officially change the name from the "Diversity Committee" to the "Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee?"  Why would that matter?  Does it change the mission of the committee?  
• Is Cedarburg so racist that we need an official committee within the governing body?  What is the real agenda of this Committee? 

Corrections

• Councilman Kevin Curley is not listed on the city's Diversity Commitee website, so we made the incorrect conclusion the Common Council was not represented.     

Action

• Send a message to the Common Council: Send a message/question to the Cedarburg City Clerk, Tracie Sette, via the city's website message form. Request that she forward your message to the Common Council & Mayor. 
• Call your Councilman:  Here is a link to the Cedarburg Common Council members' contact information by district if you would like to discuss this issue. 
• IMPORTANT: The Cedarburg Common Council does NOT have the DEI topic on the July 31 agenda as we previously heard.  It is still recommended citizens participate in these meetings to voice concerns and, just as important, let our elected officials know we are watching.  We will continue to monitor the agendas.   

Additional Note - Port Washington

Port Washington has a "Diversity & Inclusion Committee" which was established October 20, 2020 via Resolution 2020-14.  It appears the last meeting for this committee was November 2021 indicating it may be in remission, but vigilance is required.  

DEI Materials 

"Diversity has come to mean an identity-based approach to society, a call for quotas, which are unconstitutional and antithetical to American ideals. Alignment to the political orthodoxy of the Left hides behind it. If we have learned anything in the past few days, it is that diversity as defined by the Left does not include Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas. It does not include Martin Brown.  Equity, perhaps the worst corruption, enjoins government and the private sector to treat Americans differently because of their race, country of origin, or other immutable characteristics. It promises equal outcomes, an old Marxist idea, not equal opportunity, the American ideal. It is now the functional opposite of equal treatment. Inclusion also means the opposite of its original definition. People espousing the wrong ideas are excluded and canceled from public debate. Just ask the kids wearing the pro-life hats who were told to remove them or get out when visiting a taxpayer-funded Smithsonian Museum. All these ideas are now entrenched in our cultural institutions." Written by Kevin Brown, President of the Heritage Foundation.  Click here for complete article.

The Marxist Roots of DEI - Session 1 Equity| James Lindsay

The Marxist Roots of DEI - Session 2 Diversity| James Lindsay

The Marxist Roots of DEI - Session 3 Inclusion| James Lindsay