Petaluma community group forms to promote unity

The Petaluma Community Relations Council links non- profits, activists and religious groups.|

Amid a divisive national political climate, Petaluma community leaders are forming a nonpartisan coalition to bring together activists, nonprofits and religious organizations to facilitate dialogue and advocate for a shared message of diversity.

The fledgling Petaluma Community Council is spearheaded by B’nai Israel Jewish Center’s Rabbi Ted Feldman, who in December issued a call for a meeting of local leaders to discuss the state of Petaluma and the nation in the wake of the election. From there, the idea to create a council to unite residents from both sides of the political spectrum under one umbrella emerged.

“We just kept meeting and we kept talking about coming together and having a forum for open conversation about what’s going on,” Feldman said. “We’re hoping to include not only those who are concerned, but those who may support what’s happening. We want people to have a place in the community where they can safely come together to project diversity and acknowledge and share ideas with each other.”

The council’s bylaws, organizational structure and a website are being solidified, with outreach in the works amid plans to formally launch in coming weeks, Feldman said. He said he hopes the council will soon become a mechanism for lobbying local government and law enforcement officials on various causes.

Through meetings at B’nai Israel Jewish Center, it will also provide a venue to unite entities and individuals that might not otherwise interface, according to Marjorie Helm, a member of the organization’s coordinating committee.

“One of the core things that we’ll be doing is providing a monthly opportunity for groups actively engaged in human rights preservation to have a place to get together and say ‘I’m doing this, or I’m doing that ...The idea is to give people a place to come together to collaborate so people aren’t stepping on each other’s toes or cross scheduling,” she said.

More than 20 groups have expressed interest in joining the committee, including nonprofits such as the Committee on The Shelterless and Mentor Me, as well as religions organizations and grassroots activist groups like One Petaluma and Hate-Free Petaluma, Feldman said.

Luke Entrup, whose One Petaluma organization hosts rallies and events, said the council will help strengthen local groups.

“It’s certainly useful to meet and connect with other residents who are organizing around issues of peace and justice in the community,” he said.

Feldman hopes the council will last long after the current federal administration to become a pillar in the community, potentially hosting annual events, creating subcommittees to tackle neighborhood issues or tracking recurring civil issues in the community. In the short term, Helm said plans are in the works to host a community engagement fair to showcase local volunteer opportunities, with hopes to tap local experts for ongoing trainings to promote inclusivity.

The group also voted to sign a declaration calling on the city to adopt an “It Won’t Happen Here” resolution safeguarding undocumented immigrants and culturally marginalized populations and it will continue to support efforts to “protect the erosion of human rights,” Helm said.

Helm was shaken by reports of national and local incidents she said were incited by “hate speech coming from the highest levels in the government,” including a display of a Confederate Flag, considered by many as a racist symbol, at Petaluma’s Veterans Day Parade and reports of confrontations on school campuses. For Helm, who co-founded Petaluma’s annual Dia de Los Muertos celebration that brings together local communities, watching organizations work together is reassuring in a time of tension.

“People really want to help,” she said. “Petaluma is a community that is just based on people helping each other.”

While the council has been under development, Feldman said his organization has been working with the police department and conducting informal safety training as bomb threats have rocked Jewish community centers across the nation. Though a wave of vandalisms occurred about five years ago, Feldman said his center hasn’t received any recent threats. He’s been seeking funding to increase security at the center since 2015, and he was recently awarded a state grant for upgrades, he said.

(Contact Hannah Beausang at hannah.beausang@arguscourier.com.)

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