AGENDA REPORT
Meeting Date: April 18, 2023
Item Number:
To: Honorable Mayor and City Council
From: Cynthia Owens, Municipal Affairs Program Manager
Subject: RATIFICATION OF THE ENDORSEMENT OF THE DENVER
DECLARATION ON ENHANCING MAYORAL LEADERSHIP IN
ADDRESSING HATE, EXTREMISM, AND POLARIZATION AND
SAFEGUARDING LOCAL DEMOCRACY IN THE AMERICAS BY CITY
MANAGER NANCY HUNT-COFFEY AT THE DIRECTION OF MAYOR
JULIAN A. GOLD, M.D.
Attachment: 1. Denver Declaration on Enhancing Mayoral Leadership in Addressing Hate, Extremism, and Polarization and Safeguarding Local Democracy in the Americas
RECOMMENDATION
Staff recommends the City Council ratify the action taken by City Manager Nancy HuntCoffey at the direction of Mayor Julian A. Gold, M.D. to endorse the Denver Declaration on Enhancing Mayoral Leadership in Addressing Hate, Extremism, and Polarization and Safeguarding Local Democracy in the Americas (Attachment 1).
INTRODUCTION
At the Cities Summit of Americas (“CSOA”), which will be hosted on April 26-28, 2023, in Denver, Colorado, the Denver Declaration on Enhancing Mayoral Leadership in Addressing Hate, Extremism, and Polarization and Safeguarding Local Democracy in the Americas (the “Declaration”) will be introduced and the cities who endorsed the Declaration will be announced. At the direction of Mayor Gold, City Manager Nancy Hunt-Coffey endorsed the Declaration on behalf of the City Beverly Hills as the deadline for endorsement was April 14, 2023.
DISCUSSION
This first ever CSOA, is a United States Government led effort to convene city, state, municipal, and regional leaders from throughout the Western Hemisphere to focus on E-5
Meeting Date: April 18, 2023
shared challenges and opportunities alongside diverse stakeholders from the private sector, civil society, and youth, will be held April 26-28, 2023, in Denver, Colorado.
The objective of the summit is to empower local governments, businesses, and community organizations to collaborate and develop new solutions for the most pressing issues facing cities, including:
Sustainable development,
Climate resilience,
Foreign direct investment,
Women’s empowerment,
Uplifting underserved communities, and
Public safety
The CSOA is being organized by the City of Denver, State of Colorado, and Biennial of the Americas in partnership with the United States Government, which is being led by the United States Department of State.
Organizers from CSOA reached out to numerous cities asking for their endorsement of the attached Declaration. Some of the relevant statements in the Declaration include but are not limited to:
Condemning the rising levels of extremism and hate; increased polarization; antigovernment sentiment; and gender-based, inter-communal, and gang-related violence and noting that local officials are increasingly being targeted; Appreciating that due to their proximity to and familiarity with local communities, mayors and other local leaders are well-placed to identify the priorities of their residents and develop innovative approaches to reduce inequality and discrimination and ensure access to public services; and Standing in solidarity with local leaders and communities who defend, promote, and protect the rights of their communities, minorities, migrants, and others who seek shelter and refuge in times of crisis.
The Declaration then calls on all mayors and other local leaders from the Western Hemisphere to join the CSOA in a variety of activities focused on addressing hate, extremism, and polarization and safeguarding local democracy in the Americas, including statements such as:
Speaking out regularly and consistently against all forms of discrimination, disinformation, intolerance, hate, violence, and extremism; Sending a clear and consistent public message of being an inclusive and welcoming city, recognizing that public safety and well-being begins with inclusion at the local level, and that inclusivity is the foundation for effective prevention and response; and
Promoting increased cooperation with national partners to ensure that the voices of cities and their communities are reflected in national, regional, and international policy frameworks aimed at reducing the threats posed by hate, extremism, and polarization.
After reviewing the Declaration, Mayor Gold directed City Manager Nancy Hunt-Coffey to endorse the Declaration. In accordance with the City Council Policy & Operations Manual, this direction requires ratification by the City Council.
Meeting Date: April 18, 2023
FISCAL IMPACT
Staff estimates there is no fiscal impact associated with this item.
Gabriella Yap
Senior Policy & Management
Administrator, Public Safety
Approved By
Attachment 1
Denver Declaration on Enhancing Mayoral Leadership in Addressing Hate, Extremism, and Polarization and Safeguarding Local Democracy in the Americas Cities Summit of the Americas
Track Session on Democracy and Inclusion
Denver, Colorado
April 28, 2023
We, the Mayors and other City Leaders gathered in Denver at the Cities Summit of the Americas, and in the context of the Democracy and Inclusion Track Session on Enhancing Mayoral Leadership in Addressing Hate, Extremism and Polarization, and Safeguarding Local Democracy in the Americas:
Condemning the rising levels of extremism and hate, increased polarization, anti-government sentiment, and gender-based, inter-communal, and gang-related violence and noting that local officials are increasingly being targeted.
Expressing concern that misinformation, disinformation, and conspiracy theories are contributing to these worrisome trends.
Recognizing that mayors and other local leaders across the Americas have a unique, but sometimes overlooked, role to play in preventing and responding to these challenges, including by working in close collaboration with civil society and the communities they serve to strengthen social cohesion and create cities of belonging.
Appreciating that that due to their proximity to and familiarity with local communities, mayors and other local leaders are well-placed to identify the priorities of their residents and develop innovative approaches to reduce inequality and discrimination and ensure access to public services.
Recognizing the role mayors can play in countering dis- and mis-information, for example, by sharing and making available fact-based, contextualized information in relevant local languages about events, including elections, public protests, and violent attacks, or access to social services, which are susceptible to being manipulated to generate or exacerbate inter-communal tensions.
Standing in solidarity with local leaders and communities who defend, promote, and protect the rights of their communities, minorities, migrants, and others who seek shelter and refuge in times of crisis.
Welcoming the leading role that the Strong Cities Network and the National League of Cities and other relevant country-focused networks in the Western Hemisphere continue to play in facilitating the sharing of local learnings among mayors and local governments.
Declare our commitment to, and call on all mayors and other local leaders from across the Western Hemisphere, to join us in:
1. Speaking out regularly and consistently against all forms of discrimination, disinformation, intolerance, hate, violence, and extremism.
2. Sending a clear and consistent public message of being an inclusive and welcoming city, recognizing that public safety and well-being begins with inclusion at the local level, and that inclusivity is the foundation for effective prevention and response.
3. Strengthening local democratic institutions, including by facilitating the active participation of all residents, especially women, young people, isolated or marginalized communities, and new arrivals, to promote and foster social cohesion, representative governance, and resilience.
4. Investing in building trust with and between communities so there are established connections when/if hate or extremism emerges or polarization rises, recognizing that authentic, trusted relationships with communities are essential for rallying support in moments of crisis, for addressing discriminatory historical or structural legacies or injustices, and building long-term community cohesion and resilience.
5. Promoting transparency and pursuing open dialogue between city authorities, civil society and communities, to understand peoples’ lived realities and aspirations, including by creating safe spaces for difficult conversations (including about racism, injustice, and hatred) among cross-sections of the local population.
6. Considering hate, extremism, and polarization, and the violence that can manifest from these threats in their multidimensional and interconnected forms, including by investing city resources in and deepening their understanding of this threat landscape, building capacity to collaborate around integrated prevention policies and programs that are multi-disciplinary and evidence-based, addressing local grievances, and remaining responsive to a continuously changing and increasingly interconnected and dynamic threat environment.
7. Promoting increased cooperation with national partners to ensure that the voices of cities and their communities are reflected in national, regional, and international policy frameworks aimed at reducing the threats posed by hate, extremism, and polarization.
8. Building cooperation with the Strong Cities Network, and other relevant networks and partners, to elevate and enhance the role of mayors and the cities they lead in preventing and responding to hate, extremism, and polarization, and safeguarding local democracy.
Express our further commitment to share with the Strong Cities Network on an annual basis the actions we have taken to implement this declaration.