Item:
Title
Proclamation - Durham Domestic and Care Workers Day of Recognition 2020 (10min)
Body
Date of BOCC Meeting: October 12, 2020
Request for Board Action:
Agenda Text
The Board is requested to recognize October 13, 2020 as Durham Domestic and Care Workers Day in Durham County.
We, a group of engaged Durham residents, formally request a Domestic and Care Workers Day of Recognition proclamation for the County of Durham. We are but a small portion of the many hardworking people across the state who provide care for children, the elderly, and people with disabilities and would like to formally acknowledge the many contributions of our workforce. As child-care providers, housecleaners, direct care workers, and unpaid family caregivers, we do the important work of providing exceptional care for loved ones in the home and at facilities, and make it so that the people we care for may live with dignity and respect. Domestic and care workers create safe, clean, and loving environments in the home, rear and educate our youngest and make all other work possible.
Now today more than ever, domestic and care workers deserve recognition for the role they play and their impact in the lives of so many. Domestic and care workers were among the many essential workers who have worked throughout the pandemic and do all they can to support the communities that rely on them. This year, many care workers did not have the option to quarantine and stay home, and have been made to show up, do their work, and risk their own safety and the safety of their families as the coronavirus rages on. Their work is invaluable to us all and should be recognized as such.
North Carolina boasts one of the highest concentrations of care workers in the country and Durham is home to thousands of these workers, and as such, we wish to value that work through passing this special proclamation. The date we are proposing coincides with the birthday of a very special leader in the domestic workers’ movement, Dorothy Bolden. Bolden worked tirelessly as a domestic worker and advocated on the behalf of her fellow workers to bring their work out of the shadows and celebrated in the light. There is a rich history of care work in the South and we’d like to honor that legacy here in Durham and proclaim once again, October 13th the Durham Domestic and Care Workers Day of Recognition. We hope to have the proclamation read at the October 12 regular session meeting and have it formally recognized on October 13.
Alignment with Strategic Plan: This item aligns with Strategic Goal 1: Community and Family Prosperity and Enrichment
Resource Persons: Chanelle Croxton, on behalf of the National Domestic Workers Alliance of Durham Chapter
County Manager’s Recommendation: The County Manager recommends that the Board recognize October 13, 2020 as Durham Domestic and Care Workers Day in Durham County.
Signature
County Manager: ____________________________