PKG: implicit bias triaining

PKG: implicit bias triaining

The lexington fayette urban city government approved this afternoon funding for implicit bias training for all its employees.... and that includes police.

If you remember this is a recommendation from the mayor's commission on racial justice and equality following black lives matter protests here in lexington and nation wide.

As abc 36's monica harkins reports there was some controversy too.....on where the money would come from.

L3: abc 36 news white council member preston worley district 7 how do we battle systemic racism in lexington?

It's a question that consumed a committee through the mayor's office all summer.

Now the first task is underway.

"mayor gorton: all in favor raise your hand."

The lexington fayette urban county government approved $120,000 dollars for implicit bias training for all its 32 hundred employees tuesday.

The part that got people talking....where would that money come from?

Mayor gorton previously supported using money from the emergency rental assistance program....a pot of money that helps people facing eviction.

A proposal people online ... and council members alike let her know they didn't agree with.

Cm worley: with all respect i believe in a time when we're coming into our coldest months, when we're seeing additional covid shut downs, i think that being the intial proposal was a bit tone deaf and insensitive."

The mayor defended herself saying the partners the council works with to help people battling eviction...said they didn't need all the money allocated.

Mayor gorton: it was an honest effort to try to figure out where we could fund this implicit bias training and it was not meant to undermine any prorgam."

The money ultimately is being pulled from the budget stabilization fund.

As for what's next..the council will start reviewing proposals from companies that offer this type of training with an estimate of starting the training sessions in may of 2021....almost a year after protests in lexington.

And as a few councilmemebers point out...there's still more to come.

"cm mossotti:.

It's a good start but we got a long way to go yet."

Cm james brown:" the key word there is that this training will help our employees and help us have an open mind and look at things from a different perspective."

In lexington, monica harkins, abc 36 news.

### the department of criminal justice