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' Ms. Miller commented she would address this with sensitivity and respect, ensuring that those speaking are <br />being respected. She understood that everyone had biases and she would want everyone to have the <br />opportunity to express their opinion. She did not appreciate a bullying mentality. She stated she would speak <br />up for those whose voices were being oppressed. She indicated she could gather opposing opinions and still <br />work through it. She discussed how much courage it took for people to come forward to express their concerns <br />and she believed people needed to be able to come forward and speak. <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas thanked Ms. Miller for coming in and applying for this position. She noted City <br />Clerk Spangrud would be in touch with further information on how the Council was moving forward. She <br />explained the next person to be interviewed was Kristin Lau. <br />Councilmember Axberg asked Ms. Lau to explain how both your personal and professional experiences will <br />help her be an effective member of the Equity Commission, if appointed. <br />Ms. Lau stated she grew up on the east side of St. Paul and moved to New Brighton 18 years ago. She <br />explained she married her high school sweetheart who is Chinese Cambodian and together they have five <br />children. She indicated her children are bi-racial and her mother is Mexican. She stated diversity was her <br />personal experience and everything cultural. She explained she worked as a public health nurse for Ramsey <br />County advocating and working with first time moms, primarily women of color. <br />Councilmember Abdulle asked what are some specific goals Ms. Lau hopes to accomplish by serving on New <br />Brighton's Equity Commission. <br />Ms. Lau responded she was thinking about how to uplift black indigenous people of color. She commented <br />there was not always a safe space for people to share their stories and troubles. She understood as a white <br />woman of privilege she may not be the right person for this committee, but noted she has an opportunity to <br />share her empathy and experience with the community. She believed it would be important for the community <br />to further understand implicit bias. <br />Councilmember Allen asked what opportunities and challenges are important for New Brighton to consider in <br />addressing inclusion in New Brighton. <br />Ms. Lau stated there were tremendous opportunities to address. She discussed how New Brighton has changed <br />over the past 18 years. She believed there was a great opportunity to engage the young families that were <br />moving to the community which was changing the school system. She wanted to see the City creating events <br />that would draw families to in order for the community to truly get to know each other. She understood the <br />world was going through a pandemic, but she knew people did better together and she wanted to see people <br />starting to come back together. She hoped that the Equity Commission would provide a safe space for <br />community engagement. She anticipated a challenge would be people who do not want to engage or are afraid <br />to go outside of their own comfort system. She hoped that people would be able to come together, even if this <br />was in small group discussions, in order to learn then have a lot more in common with others than they do not. <br />Mayor Niedfeldt-Thomas explained topics addressed by the Equity Commission will be sensitive, emotional, <br />and important. If she had concerns about a specific policy or issue being discussed, how would she address <br />this. <br />Ms. Lau commented she has read a lot in the past few years about how to use her voice because there were <br />times, she found herself in hot water with family members. She stated she recently read My Grandmothers <br />Hands and was part of a group that talks about the chapters every week. She discussed how important it was to <br />