HomeMy WebLinkAbout1/12/2021 Item 08, Fontaine
Wilbanks, Megan
From:Olive Fontaine <
To:E-mail Council Website
Subject:SLO City 2021-23 Financial Plan
Olive Fontaine
BLMCA Member
December 15, 2020
Re: SLO City 2021-23 Financial Plan.
Dear San Luis Obispo City Council,
My name is Olive Fontaine and I am a local graphic designer and activist. My roots in San Luis Obispo started
when most of my family moved here in the 90s. I became even further rooted when I started my journey at
Cuesta and Cal Poly. The passion I have for activism comes from my desire to see all members of the
community happy and thriving, which I haven't seen consistently as a resident here. San Luis Obispo is a
beautiful space that should feel warm and welcoming for everyone. These are my suggestions for the SLO
City Budget for 2021-23 budget to reflect spending that will benefit the entirety of the San Luis Obispo
community.
1. View responses to racism as a public health crisis within SLO.
2. Redistribute funds to social services and other similar resources.
3. Create a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee to ensure strong efforts in the handling of
this public health crisis.
1. SLO City Council declared racism to be a public health crisis in June 2020 and while we have the
DEI Task Force to help, a task force is not enough to resist racism within the community. Across
America, we’re seeing cities of all sizes declaring racism to be a public health crisis. When one part of
a community is suffering then it impacts the community as a whole. San Luis Obipso has the
opportunity to be known for its efforts towards inclusion rather than being known for its lack of
efforts towards inclusion. Funds should be reallocated to give social services and similar resources
more capital.
2. In August 2020 Black Lives Community Action (BLMCA) created a six page budget recommendations
document. The document calls for adopted budget augmentations, new budget augmentations and
divestments to balance out added budget augmentations. I implore council members to reevaluate
the thoughtfully created recommendations that are in that document. Funds need to be
reallocated from the sheriff/coroner’s budget to social services and similar resources for the
sake of the wellbeing of our community members’ lives.
3. San Luis Opispo should create a Diversity, Equity and Inclusion Committee that will be open
with the community and will work towards the betterment of BIPoC lives. The DEI Task Force is a
good start to combating racism, but it is by no means the end. For example, the statement seen in the
draft of recommendations from the DEI Task Force Agenda Correspondance (12/9/2020 Item 3,
Magee), “requir\[ing\] cultural competency training for police,” is not a thoughtful or strong step towards
making structural changes that will help fight systemic racism. A more meaningful step would be to
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work with the SLO County Public Health Department and local non-profits to identify the repercussions
of poverty, mental health, homelessness, and the carceral system for the BIPoC community in San Luis
Obispo. The continuing of this relationship would be important for gathering data, identifying needs, and
making recommendations in order to create strong social service care for the community.
San Luis Obispo is a beautiful space that should feel warm and welcoming for everyone. I hope the decisions
reached for the SLO City Budget for 2021-23 budget will reflect spending that will benefit the entirety of the
San Luis Obispo community.
Sincerely,
Olive Fontaine
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