Council deals with sensitive issue and (surprise) no one calls anyone else names
First-blush impressions of the Greensboro City Council's discussion Tuesday of the Truth and Reconciliation Commission's report:
1. Every council member attended, except Florence Gatten, who is out of town tending to her ill mother.
2. The tone was respectful, civil and professional, even though there was sharp disagreement on some aspects of the report and the issue in general.
3. Mayor Keith Holliday made the obvious and eminently appropriate suggestion that the city's Human Relations Commission take up the report. (The Human Relations Commission should have been more engaged and more involved in the TRC matter from day one, if you ask me.)
4. Tom Phillips, an avowed TRC skeptic, not only came, but participated and even made a thoughtful suggestion that the council narrow its discussion topics for the Human Relations Commission to a critical few. Good idea, Tom.
5. The council briefing room was an absolutely lousy venue that was cramped and hot, with too few seats to accommodate observers. What were they thinking?
6. The council agreed that followup discussions should occur.
The spectators, who seemed primarily to consist of TRC supporters, appeared generally impressed with what they saw and heard.
This, from TRC Commissioner Bob Peters: "I can see potentially difficult conversations coming out of this, which I welcome. I can see disagreements coming out of this, which I also welcome."
More reactions from Ed Cone.