Residents question lagging racial equity training & choice of vice chair

April 24, 2021 | By Lisa Scagliotti 

Waterbury Select Board meetings are available to watch online on orcamedia.net. Screenshot

A discussion regarding anti-racism training for select board members turned heated Monday night as members of the public challenged the board’s recent choice of longtime board member Chris Viens as vice chair. 

In its reorganization meeting following the March Town Meeting Day election, the five-member board voted unanimously to choose Mark Frier as chair, Chris Viens as vice chair, and Mike Bard as board secretary. 

A member of the board since 2012, Viens served as chair until November 2020. He relinquished the board leadership role following a public outcry for his resignation in response to comments he made regarding race in policing during a legislative candidate forum. Viens ran as an independent candidate for the state legislature last November.

Following those events, Viens and the entire board agreed to attend racial equity training to broaden understanding of racism as it applies to their roles as elected officials. The issue has come to the forefront of public debate in Vermont and across the country in recent months as society turns attention to racial discrimination particularly in policing. 

The training topic was on Monday’s agenda for discussion as it has not yet been scheduled. Board members and Municipal Manager Bill Shepeluk discussed attempts to contact various organizations that provide such informational sessions for local officials. Newly elected member Dani Kehlmann shared recent contacts she’d made with a goal of scheduling sessions for board members and some town staff as well by early summer. Shepeluk said he would pursue scheduling.

The public weighs in 

Several members of the public in attendance who are active with the Waterbury Area Anti-Racism Coalition commented on the lack of training so far and they disagreed with Viens being chosen as vice chair.

Frier said he’s received emails voicing those concerns and that the board could discuss it further. As the longest-serving member of the board, Viens has experience that is valuable, Frier said. “It’s helpful to have somebody who really knows how to navigate just the meetings themselves,” he explained, adding that he’s still learning board procedure after five years in office. 

Frier also acknowledged the impact of leadership roles. “I think we’ve learned a lot in the last year that positions like chair potentially have more opportunities to speak. And words matter and words can definitely create hurt and pain,” he said. 

The group is “willing to learn and research and try to figure how to bring education onto the board,” Frier said. 

Maroni Minter reminded the board that he led a petition effort last fall calling for Viens to resign. “The last couple of weeks have been tough,” Minter said. Recent police shootings of Black individuals in other states and the ongoing trial in Minnesota in the murder of George Floyd, a Black man, at the hands of police have “brought back traumatic memories of 2020.” 

He included Viens’ remarks about having a segregated police force to match minority officers with people involved in calls, comments Minter called harmful. 

“Many of us were willing to live with Chris stepping down, knowing at the time that the select board, including Chris, would commit to ongoing anti-racism trainings,” Minter said. “I’m just here to let you know that I’m disappointed. The decision was pretty much a slap in the face to me personally and to all of the Black and brown residents of Waterbury. It was also a slap in the face to so many constituents who voted for you.” 

Minter said local racial justice activists want to work with the board but, “we are still watching you and will continue to hold you all accountable.”

When Viens had a chance to reply, he described challenges he has with dyslexia and reading, and struggles he had in school. He said he shouldn’t have used the word “segregated” in his comments last fall.

“What I thought I was saying was a separate division of the police department of minority police officers to go into minority communities to help calm, diffuse the problems, stop the killings … instead I was called a  racist,” he said, attributing the reaction to the heat of an election campaign. “I made a mistake.”

He pointed to the recent announcement by the Vermont State Police in hiring the first trooper who is a refugee who said he hoped to represent his community.

“People got me labeled wrong. I was the forward thinker,” he said. “You guys want my ass out just tell me. You could find somebody else to solve your problems.” 

Viens also took issue with the racial equity sessions the board is pursuing. “The word ‘training’ offends me. How about ‘understanding’ instead?” he asked.  

Alexia Venafra, who said it was her first select board meeting to attend “live,” suggested a book about discussing race issues for Viens to read or listen to. She called on him to be accountable. “You have all the tools that you need – assuming you have the willingness to do this work – and as somebody in power and who represents me as a citizen of this town, it is your responsibility to do so.” 

Admitting the discussion was difficult, Kehlmann suggested that the sessions for the board will offer opportunities. 

“You’re really, really humble when you talk about your background and your work and your education and that humility is what so many people respect about you and it's what I respect in you,” she said to Viens. She asked him to consider “if so many people are not understanding my words and are asking me to learn, then maybe I can be more humble and learn and understand where they’re coming from instead of just digging in and just saying that they’re wrong.” 

Shepeluk weighed in saying the topic at hand was important but he cautioned the board about setting a precedent by getting distracted into responding to any particular group in great detail. 

“This is supposed to be the select board conducting the business of the town,” he said. “This is not a town meeting. This is not a chance for the public to interrogate the board about how they feel about certain issues.” 

Shepeluk pointed out that three seats are up for election every March and if voters are unhappy with the board’s direction, “they can change the majority of the board any given year.” 

Meetings of the Waterbury Select Board are recorded by Orca Media and available to view online at orcamedia.net.