Wausau to vote June 15 on diversity resolution

By Damakant Jayshi

The City Council of Wausau on June 15 will vote on ‘A Community for All’ resolution, a diversity initiative put forward by Mayor Katie Rosenberg. 

The City Council votes come two weeks after the Economic Development Committee passed the resolution unanimously. The Liberation and Freedom Committee also unanimously passed the measure a few months ago.

The committees’ votes were in sharp contrast to that of the Executive Committee of Marathon County, which voted down the resolution on May 13. There are varying versions of the diversity-focused resolution, with supporters and opponents making changes to their respective drafts.

The county’s executive body is likely to take up the initiative again for consideration next month. Their rejection drew national attention with a The New York Times report which, in turn, drew sharp backlash in the community, with Republicans and conservatives taking issue with the news report.

The same day The New York Times’ published the piece, Mayor Rosenberg declared the city ‘a community for all’ through a proclamation. The upcoming vote by the City Council will follow up on that.

During discussions on June 1, Rosenberg told the Economic and Development Committee that she wanted to express support for the diversity initiative through her proclamation.

“I wanted to make sure the people felt that they belong here, no matter what,” she said.

Damakant Jayshi is a reporter for Wausau Pilot & Review. He is also a corps member with Report for America, an initiative of GroundTruth Project that places journalists into local newsrooms. Reach him at [email protected].