At a meeting on Monday, September 26, Princeton Council voted to introduce an ordinance to re-establish a Civil Rights Commission, which previously existed in Princeton but was discontinued 18 years ago.

Chaired by Leticia Fraga, a subcommittee of the town’s Human Services department has been working on the proposal for more than two years. Some members of that committee expressed reservations about certain elements of the ordinance, specifically in the procedures section. Those complaining about unfair or discriminatory treatment should be able to go directly to the Civil Rights Commission rather than having to first contact the executive director of the Human Services department, they said.

“This is absolutely what we did not recommend,” said member Elizabeth Bates. “Most importantly, it is not a system that will make people comfortable.”

Committee member John Heilner commented, “Multiple options for intake should be given because some residents and visitors are uncomfortable going to a direct government office, to an employee paid by the municipality. People have long memories. They remember the good situation in 1968 to 1998, when the Commission was truly independent. They recall some problems when the process was under Human Services before. Not many, but the ones that resulted in a police officer not trusting the process at all and going directly to court, and another when the process was started but the complainant pulled out when the process was tampered with. Both resulted in large settlements paid by the former Borough.”

The ordinance was tabled by Council in April due to concerns expressed by members of the committee. “We believed it didn’t go far enough,” Ms. Fraga said on Monday. “We strongly believe that a Civil Rights Commission should be more than a symbolic gesture.”

Ms. Fraga thanked Council for progress that has been made since April, but the ordinance is still lacking. The Commission would best serve its function if changes are made to the policies and procedures being proposed, she said. She was particularly touched by a comment from Councilman Lance Liverman. “He said that unless someone has been treated unfairly or targeted because of the color of your skin, I imagine it is difficult to really understand why this is so important,” Ms. Fraga said. “There are so many in our community that are hurting …. This is something that we need and it can’t come soon enough.”

An advisory body, the Commission would meet monthly and be made up of nine members appointed by the mayor with consent of Council. All must be residents of Princeton and have experience in assisting in the resolution of discrimination complaints, according to the ordinance. Meetings can take place in closed session, to protect the privacy of those making complaints. But any documents or written materials are subject to public access under the Open Public Records Act (OPRA).

A public hearing on the ordinance will take place at the October 24 meeting of Council.