Skip to main content
City of Madison
  • Accounts
    • All Accounts
    • My Account
    • ePayments
    • Water Customer Care
    • Employment
    • Licenses & Permits
  • Services
  • Jobs
  • Agencies
    • All Agencies
    • Assessor's Office
    • Attorney's Office
    • Building Inspection
    • Civil Rights
    • Clerk's Office
    • Common Council
    • Community Development
    • Development Services Center
    • Economic Development
    • Employee Assistance Program
    • Engineering
    • Finance
    • Fire
    • Fleet Service
    • Golf
    • Goodman Pool
    • Housing Authority
    • Human Resources
    • Information Technology
    • Madison City Channel
    • Madison Public Library
    • Madison Senior Center
    • Mayor's Office
    • Metro Transit
    • Monona Terrace
    • Municipal Court
    • Office of Business Resources
    • Office of Real Estate Services
    • Olbrich Botanical Gardens
    • Parking Utility
    • Parks
    • Planning
    • Planning, Community & Economic Development
    • Police
    • Public Health Madison & Dane County
    • Public Works
    • Streets & Recycling
    • Traffic Engineering
    • Transportation
    • Treasurer's Office
    • Warner Park Community Recreation Center
    • Water Utility
  • Data
  • Contact
    • Mayor
    • City Council
    • City Staff & Agencies

Search form

Coronavirus (COVID-19)

  • City Services
  • Public Health
  • Get Alerts
  • Español
  • Hmoob
City of Madison Civil Rights logo, copyright City of Madison

Civil Rights

  • Norman D. Davis, Director
  • Home
  • File a Complaint
  • Know Your Rights
  • Programs
  • Find Help
  • Contract Compliance
  • Contact
  1. City of Madison
  2. Civil Rights
  3. Programs
  4. Racial Equity & Social Justice Initiative
  5. Frequently Asked Questions

Frequently Asked Questions

Why focus internally?

RESJI is working to create change in the areas we can have the strongest initial impact, like departmental operations, hiring, budgeting, and policymaking. The initial RESJI recommendations include ways to engage and support communities and neighborhoods in more sustained and authentic ways. Our partners in the community have been leading the way on racial equity and social justice in their own communities, and we will continue supporting and aligning with their efforts in every way we can.

Why focus on race?

RESJI’s explicit focus on racial equity is in direct response to racial disparities documented in the Wisconsin Council on Children and Families’ (WCCF) Race to Equity report released in September 2013. Efforts that address poverty and other social conditions without specifically focusing on race can actually widen racial inequities. For example, programs that are designed to help women gain employment are valuable, but women of color suffer joblessness at a higher rate than women in general.

Who is involved in RESJI?

Representatives from each city department participate on the core team, as well as leading change in their own departments. Department heads have received training in RESJI and are key partners. RESJI is interested in strengthening the City of Madison’s connections to the community to promote accountability and transparency.

When will the impact of RESJI be visible?

RESJI has celebrated several early wins, including the development and piloting of the RESJI equity impact analysis tool, departments adopting equity in their mission statements with a strong focus on equity in their work planning, serving as a partner to the Dane County RESJ team, and training many employees and elected officials in Dane County. Racial disparities have been formed over the course of centuries in the United States. We have a long term focus, as we want to build sustainable capacity to make the urgent, deliberate, and monumental change that is needed. We often say RESJI work is a marathon, not a sprint.

How will progress be measured?

Community engagement, transparency, communication, and data are key parts of measuring RESJI’s work. The RESJI team has several important data points that can be used to track the City’s progress, such as employment demographics and demographics of the city’s commissions and committees. There are also many external data points that RESJI is organizing to set a roadmap for progress and success. We also plan to regularly check-in with community members to track our progress.

How is RESJI different from past efforts to address racism?

RESJI is an urgent, deliberative shift in the way that the City approaches race and equity. Through the development and application of a racial equity impact analysis tool, RESJI is focused on addressing institutional racism within the City’s institutional structure. Past efforts focused primarily on programs targeted at individuals, RESJI takes a more comprehensive approach to challenging the perpetuation of institutional and structural racism.

How was the initiative started? 

The initiative was started in 2014 by a small group of committed employees and alders. The links below can provide more information. 

  • Article on RESJI Origins 
  • RESJI Briefing Book
  • Profile of Lucia Nunez

 
 

Programs

  • AASPIRE Internships
    • AASPIRE Program Benefits
    • AASPIRE Program Timeline
  • Disability Rights & Services Program
    • ADA Enforcement
      • File a Complaint
      • Partnerships
    • Accessible Parking Stalls
    • Assistive Communication
      • Assistive Listening Devices
      • Wisconsin Relay Service
    • Disability Rights Commission
    • Mask FAQ
    • Support & Service Animals
  • Equitable Workforce (Affirmative Action) Plan
  • Racial Equity & Social Justice Initiative
    • Mission & Vision
    • City Projects Using RESJI Tools
    • Frequently Asked Questions
    • Learning Resources
    • Newsletters
    • Priority Areas
    • RESJI Briefing Book
    • Tools
  • Referrals and Interviews for Sustainable Employment (RaISE) Program
    • Department of Civil Rights Announces New Partnerships with the RaISE Program
    • RaISE Job Posting Instructions
    • RaISE Program Job Postings
  • Trainings
    • Request a Training
    • Available Trainings
    • Certified Community Partner Training
    • Dane County Job Center Trainings

Racial Equity Contacts

  • S. Tariq Saqqaf, Equity Coordinator, Department of Civil Rights
    tsaqqaf@cityofmadison.com
  • Donna Collingwood, City of Madison Assistant Equity Coordinator
    dcollingwood@cityofmadison.com

Civil Rights

City County Building
210 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd
Room 523
Madison, WI 53703
  • Hours:
    Monday - Friday, 8:00 am – 4:30 pm
  • Phone: (608) 266-4910
  • Fax: (608) 266-6514
  • dcr@cityofmadison.com
  • WI Relay Service

About Our Department

  • Mission & Vision
  • Awards
  • Partners

Services

  • Assistive Communication
  • File an Affirmative Action Plan
  • File a Discrimination Complaint
  • Request a Training

Stay Informed

  • Civil Rights Facebook
  • Civil Rights Twitter
  • Contracting Disparity Study Email List

All Social Media »

City of Madison, Wisconsin logo, copyright City of Madison

Our Madison – Inclusive, Innovative, & Thriving

Copyright © 1995 - 2021 City of Madison, WI
  • Contact Webmaster
  • Accessibility
  • Web Policies
2019 Winner of the Digital Cities Survey by the Center for Digital Government