Photo by Nia Gilbert
Bloomington Mayor Tari Renner tapped into Tuesday’s official awareness-building “relaunch” of Not In Our Town-Bloomington/Normal to spearhead a fresh look at local police practices and community relations.
Renner was one of dozens signing pledges to fight bigotry and bullying at NIOT-B/N’s relaunch event at the McLean County YWCA. As the community anti-hate initiative unveiled its “Season4Reason” awareness/information campaign, the mayor reported that "going forward, I'm calling for the city to review and assess our current training programs and community policing practices, and I'm asking the Human Relations Commission to begin a dialogue on race relations and make recommendations for the future."
The Bloomington Police Department is a charter member of the Minority and Police Partnership of McLean County, and Chief Brendan Heffner holds regular focus meetings with the public.
"I want to be sure and lead on this rather that be reactive," Renner told The Pantagraph. "Whether it's like Ferguson, Mo., or Staten Island, N.Y., we in Bloomington are going to make it clear that this will not happen in our town."
Tuesday's event featured NIOT’s new billboard and bus ad designs, as well as a Not In Our Town-Bloomington/Normal Quilt produced by Normal-based Sew Memorable, whose owner, Lisa Feeney, was in attendance. NIOT-Bloomington/Normal Steering Committee member Camille Taylor noted the event was attended by a “standing room only” crowd topping 125, including community officials and leaders, law enforcement representatives, educators, students, and residents on hand to pledge their support.
“I was overwhelmed to see not only the large number who came out, but also the variety of leadership and everyday folks from our community,” Taylor said. “The young people there were heartwarming as well, because they are the future leaders in Bloomington-Normal.”
As Renner pledged an overview of community relations, school officials from across the Twin Cities stressed the need to embrace NIOT’s anti-bullying message.
"It's very important for me to make sure that all of our students are included. Even though we're a large building and we've got 2,000 students we want to make sure that everybody has a place," said Dave Bollmann, Normal Community High School principal.
Photo by Nia Gilbert
Sandy Whisker/Sweet Memories Photography
The Not In Our Town Quilt: Joining the parts of our whole
As part of the relaunch, NIOT has joined with Bloomington's First Christian Church and Normal's Sew Memorable Quilt design/production studio to unveil the Not In Our Town Quilt.
The 37-inch square quilt features eight new Not In Our Town logos focusing on various segments of the community, including schools, emergency services, and the retail and corporate sectors. The logoed patches are sewn on a background employing the original black-white-and-yellow Not In Our Town palette, overlaid with pattern stitching depicting joined hands.
"We're seeking new ways to communicate a very fundamental message -- the need for a safer, more inclusive neighborhood," NIOT communications coordinator Martin Ross said. "The quilt is a great metaphor for security, comfort, the diverse parts joined into a harmonious whole.
p"That's our objective for the Twin Cities -- to bring our diverse religious, cultural, and economic communities together for the mutual benefit of the entire community."
The quilt was made possible through a $250 donation from First Christian Church as part of it's continuing community outreach campaign. The downtown-area church annually hosts a summer block party for west side families, and in 2015, it will introduce a new Sunday service aimed in part at serving the LGBT community and others who, according to FCC Associate Minister Kelley Becker, "don't currently have a church home."
Sew Memorable owner Lisa Feeney, a former corporate trainer, specializes in commemorative, special occasion, or organizational quilts often fashioned from T-shirts.
Bloomington police chat with community leaders at the event. Photo by Nia Gilbert
"Sew Memorable Quilts grew out of my basement hobby," Feeney noted. "I have sewn all my life -- I worked in a ballet shoe factory in college; I made my own wedding gown (10 foot train, hand-beaded 22,000 beads and 9,000 pearls onto galloon lace!!); and made draperies when my kids were small."