The Philomath Inclusivity Committee will meet at 5:30 p.m. Tuesday at Philomath City Hall to finalize a draft proclamation recognizing National Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month and to establish a template for posting by the committee to social media channels.
The public is invited to attend and the meeting will be livestreamed on the city’s YouTube channel.
The National Asian American and Pacific Islander Heritage Month proclamation, drafted by committee members Alba Sederlin and Jane Sherwood, would mark May under this year’s national theme, “Power of Unity: Strengthening Communities Together.”
The draft acknowledges the contributions of Asian American and Pacific Islander residents and references discrimination and “our nation and our City’s own dark history of racism and exclusion and attempt to do better.” According to the agenda materials, the proclamation must be finalized at Tuesday’s meeting so it can be forwarded to the Philomath City Council for review and adoption at a May meeting.
Committee members will also consider a social media posting template prepared by Jenn Amador. The template walks volunteers through structuring posts — opening with the observance being recognized, briefly describing its history, tying the topic to Philomath or Benton County where possible, and closing with a call to honor or celebrate the named community.
The committee will also review its calendar and discuss next steps for three upcoming observances — an inclusivity proclamation to be read in June, a possible Juneteenth post, proclamation or additional content for June 19 and recognition of National Disability Independence Day on July 26.