Austin Parks and Rec Department apologizes after planned segregated 'racial healing' meetings

AUSTIN (KXAN)—The City of Austin's Parks and Recreation Department (PARD) apologized after sending out an email that alarmed several workers.

The email sent on Jan. 25 titled in part "Healing from racial trauma," told people to attend one of two meetings: one for people of color and one for white people.

A PARD employee sent KXAN the internal email that came from someone who recently started as a PARD equity and inclusion coordinator.

PARD's director sent out an email within a day of the first email apologizing, calling the message "inappropriate" adding "it didn't reflect the values of the department."

Department leadership is aware of an email sent to the city's parks and recreation department staff regarding efforts to establish antiracist affinity groups. the email was not vetted, did not reflect the department's values, and, within 24-hours, the department issued a retraction email apologizing for the exclusion of employees in any space. the department remains committed to ensuring all employees benefit from collaboration and professional development that is inclusive of all staff. while the original email identified separate racial groups to encourage participants' comfort and willingness to share personal experiences, the intent of the email/groups was not to be exclusionary, but rather to provide a supportive environment for sharing their lived experiences and identify ways to improve the department's relational culture.

City of Austin Parks and Recreation Department

Three employees, who are Black, spoke with KXAN's Jala Washington anonymously. They wanted KXAN to conceal their identities to avoid any possible repercussions. They're now questioning who they work for.

"It was like really upsetting," one employee said. "Growing up seeing the signs saying, 'Whites Only' [and] 'No blacks,' it was like...wow, it took me back," an employee said. "It says racial affinity... get together for racial healing, but how can that be done if all parties are not there?"

Another employee said they were thrown off by the messaging.

"We're working for somebody that's talking about this, they're bringing it up, and then the way that they're going about it is just like... how do you say that?" the second employee said.

The third employee agreed, saying they didn't understand why the email was sent in the first place.

"It shouldn't have been sent out," the third employee said.

"Let's do a better job, you have to be conscientious," an employee said.

PARD said it won't be holding any of the meetings stated in the first email.

An employee said PARD's apology wasn't enough and they would like to see real action taken to prevent something like this from happening again.

"How do you go out here and expect me to perform to my highest capabilities every day, day-in and day-out, when you guys are treating us like this, making us feel like we're not all one?" the employee said.

Employees reached out to KXAN through Report@kxan.com. KXAN didn't hear back from any employees who didn't have a problem with the email.