Don’t let Trump bully Dallas away from racial equity

In March 2021, the Dallas City Council unanimously approved Dallas Racial Equity Resolution No. 19-0804, which “… recognized racial inequities brought on by a legacy of systemic racism and unjust practices and resolved to promote equity and committed to make every effort possible to commit more resources to areas and populations where data demonstrates the needs are greatest ….” It stated that “The City of Dallas understands that government is needed to help solve the problem created by governmental policies and practices.”

This resolution was not only a political statement. It is an idea rooted in scripture and shared by the people of faith throughout our city. It directed the city manager to work with stakeholders to prepare a comprehensive Racial Equity Plan (REP), a project that was completed and endorsed by the city council in August 2022.

In his introduction to the REP, Mayor Eric Johnson stated, “As city leaders, our goal must be to ensure no community in Dallas remains underserved and overlooked. The REP is a commitment to achieving that goal …[it] is a foundational document that is meant to help us address disparities in outcomes along racial, ethnic, and socio-economic lines.”

The decision by Dallas officials to comply with legally questionable executive orders from President Donald Trump – which would reverse the course our city determined for itself – is a betrayal to the underserved and overlooked, and to all those who worked so hard to acknowledge, understand and correct the systems that prevent them from thriving. 

The organization we help lead, Faith Commons, denounces the Trump administration’s demand that the City of Dallas abandon its racial equity initiatives or risk losing more than $300 million in federal funding. We acknowledge the difficult position current city leaders face due to federal demands, but we remind them that racial minorities continue to pay a price because of compliance with past policies and systems of governance that created and reinforced inequity.

Life expectancy, income, housing, education, employment and business outcomes have been shown by the city’s own research to be determined by demography rather than opportunity. 

Prior to this year’s federal directives, Dallas affirmed its commitment to inclusiveness, equity and justice in important ways: naming the drivers of poverty, identifying the neighborhoods and demographics most afflicted by them, surveying the conditions in those neighborhoods, and developing plans to address them. Let’s not abandon that progress. 

Our city leaders are complying with executive orders that may not be legal. There are unanswered questions about how compliance will be accomplished while still addressing the indisputable racial inequities that persist in our city. We have no guarantee that funding will be protected by simply changing the language organizations use to describe the work they do. In fact, we fear that refraining from challenging the legality of these executive orders will lead to more of them, and that our ability to fulfill our religious obligations to feed the hungry, heal the sick, house the homeless, and protect the widow, the orphan and the stranger will become even more difficult. 

As faith leaders who have served the city of Dallas and its residents for decades, we decry Dallas’ legacy of racism and refuse to perpetuate it. We are dismayed, disheartened, and determined to do everything in our power to call our mayor, City Council members, and the city manager to fulfill their own stated commitments to make Dallas a safer, healthier and more transparent city for all who call Dallas home and all who come here for business and leisure. 

Rabbi Nancy Kasten is chief relationship officer for Faith Commons. Rev. George Mason is its founder and president.