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Onondaga County/Syracuse Commission on Human Rights

John H. Mulroy Civic Center
15th Floor East 
421 Montgomery Street
Syracuse, NY 13202
(315) 435-3565

Our office is staffed from
8 am to 4 pm. Mon - Fri.

 

YWCA STAND AGAINST RACISM

APRIL 26, 2022

Nodesia and Agnes

Human Rights Commissioners Nodesia Hernandez and Agnes McCray

 

INTERNATIONAL HUMAN RIGHTS DAY

DECEMBER 10, 2021

HR Day

Pictured in photo left to right Executive Director of Human Rights Montanette Murphy, Human Rights Commissioner Lanessa Chaplin, Esq., Human Rights Commissioner Nodesia Hernandez, and Chief Diversity Officer Monica Williams.

 

County Executive J. Ryan McMahon, II, and Mayor Ben Walsh issued a joint proclamtion observing every year on December 10th as Human Rights Day.

 
 
Human Rights Commission Members

The members of the Human Rights Commission include up to 24 Commissioners who are confirmed by vote of the Onondga County Legislature to serve staggered three-year terms. This includes 18 members appointed by the County Executive subject to Legislature approval.  6 of those appointments are based on Legislator recommendation.  6 additional members are appointed directly by the Mayor of Syracuse.

 

On June 7, 2016 the appointment of the 12 new Human Rights Commissioners by the County Executive was confirmed by the Onondaga County Legislature.  An additional 4 new Commissioners appointed by the Legislature were confirmed on July 5, 2016.  An additional 6 new Commissioners were appointed by the Mayor of the City of Syracuse and began to participate actively in Commission meetings and activities in February 2017. 

 

Commissioners of Human Rights

                     

Rasheda

Rasheada Caldwell

Chair

 

  Mbonimpa       Rev. Roosevelt Baum      la   g

    Mbonimpa Banabas       Rev. Roosevelt Baums               Lauren Rosenstein     Hassina Adams  

 

        Agnes        Christopher Gilkes      m,     Mia Wade                          

                     Agnes McCray               Christopher Gilkes                   Samia Al-Fareh                               Mia Wade

 

      Leo       alex   l 

             Leo Sanchez                              Bishop Alex           Liam O'Connor                  

 

 

 

            

                                                    

 

The following people served as a Commissioner of Human Rights between 2016 and 2021:

  • Khadijo Abdulkadir
  • Ali Adan
  • Reverend H Bernard Alex
  • Steve Butler
  • Suzanna Carman
  • Bruce Carter, PhD
  • Sanjay Chhablani
  • Shui-Kai Chin
  • Crystal M. Doody, Esq.
  • Robert Gardino
  • Starr Guckert
  • David E. Pasinski
  • Rabbi Dan Fellman
  • Reverend Douglas P. Mackey
  • Chol Majok
  • Suzette M. Melendez, Esq.
  • Migdalia Morales
  • Montanette C. Murphy
  • Francis Parks
  • Gabriel Ramos
  • Shelley Skellington
  • Mary Alice Smothers
  • Joyce M. Suslovic
  • Jeffrey Tamburo
  • Tricia Wittkowski
  • Rosalie Young

 

The Human Rights Commission was founded in 1963 as an entity of the City of Syracuse.  It later became a joint City of Syracuse - Onondaga County entity.  In 1997 the Onondaga County/Syracuse Human Rights Commission became an entity that was housed in and supported by Onondaga County.  The City retained the ability to appoint 6 members of the Commission. 

 

The County Legislature defunded the Commission's staff in 2010, but 2 key functions of the old Commission office were retained, and 2 related staff were transferred into other County Departments. The Commission as a body did not meet for 5 years.  Then in February 2015 the Onondaga County Legislature passed legislation to renew and stengthen the Human Rights Commission, to charge the Commission staff with providing support to the new Justice Center Oversight Committee (JCOC) in addition to their regular Commisison duites, and to restore a budget line for a Commission office and an Executive Director.          (click here to view 2015 Local Laws D Establishing the JCOC & E Renewing the Human Rights Commission) 

 

The Human Rights office was re-opened in August 2015 with 2 staff - an Executive Director and one Human Rights Specialist.  After the appointment of an initial group of 16 new Commissioners were confirmed by the County Legislature, the first meeting of the new Human Rights Commission was held on Wednesday Sept. 14, 2016.

   

 

Executive Director of Human Rights for Onondaga County

 

Monty

 Montanette Murphy

Office Objectives:

 

Provide diversity training to all county employees and to non-profit human services agencies

 

Provide presentations about human and civil rights, diversity and discrimination for community groups and organizations

 

Respond to requests for information, referral and other forms of assistance from community members (from 9am to 4pm Monday through Friday as staff are available)

 

 

Provide administrative support to the members of the Human Rights Commission and Justice Center Oversight Committee

 

Identify and investigate serious complaints relating to the Onondga County Justice Center for consideration by the Jail Oversight Committee

 

Coordinate Onondaga County's Title VI, ADA & LEP Plan in collaboration with Administrators in each County Department

 

 

Utilize processes of conference, conciliation, persuasion and education to address or resolve
situations of intergroup conflict and alleged discrimination

 

Produce pamphlets and factsheets to provide the public with information about human and civil rights, and about the Commission and its work




 

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