GREEN BAY, Wis. (NBC 26) -- After a year of fighting for social justice in Northeast Wisconsin, Louise Padron, a citizen of the Oneida Nation, says her leadership role in Brown County's newest committee is another way to reach her goal of racial equity.
"Our [Oneida Nation] voices aren't really at the table," Padron said as a member of the community. "And so I really am here to be able to provide a multicultural representation."
On Monday night, Brown County's Racial Equity Ad Hoc Committee met for the first time in Green Bay. It's a group made up of community members of all backgrounds. Padron says its mission is to address racism as a public health crisis.
At the meeting, the group discussed preliminary goals, including public education campaigns.
"[We want to] inform citizens of Brown County that we do have a racial equity problem that is causing health disparities right here in Brown County," Padron said.
Padron and the committee say part of the solution to that problem is through education.
"Often times, we don't see people that are different than us as actually really human," Padron said. "I think through education... that can help to build empathy."
For Amanda Chu, as a multiracial person, she says being a part of the committee was a must.
"I think that I was just born to have an openness to what that [racial equity] really means, so that inclusive thinking," Chu, a Brown County supervisor, said.
Chu says she hopes the committee can give a voice to the voiceless.
"The committee can serve as a portal for the public and community to share their stories and provide input into their own experiences," she said.
And while the group is still forming it's recommendations for the area, Chu says everyone is welcome to provide their thoughts for racial equity in Brown County.
"It's easy to blame and shame and call people out," Chu said. "But what we're doing also in the process of that is cutting people out entirely."
The committee says it aims to educate members of the community about racial biases. Though it hasn't firmly established its goals yet, discussion resulted in the idea to create public service announcements regarding systemic racism.
The Ad Hoc group appointed its chair members and leaders for the committee as well. The list includes residents of Northeast Wisconsin who do not hold governmental posititons. Pooja Bambha-Arora was elected as Chair, Rashad Cobb as Vice Chair, and Louise Padron as Secretary.
The other members present at the meeting included Tara Yang, Jose Villa, Carina Abrego-Koch, Brown County Supervisor Amanda Chu, and Supervisor Megan Borchardt.
One of the goals mentioned by Cobb at the sitting included the hope to create a set of recommendations and innovative ideas for the Executive Committee. Villa says he would like educate people who don't understand racism and provide help to victims in the community who need resources.
It aims to gather more information for Brown Co. moving forward, but the group cites Milwaukee, Kewaunee, La Crosse, and other counties as blueprints for ways to run the committee.
The members plan to meet publically at the Brown County Central Library May 24 at 5 p.m.
