Revere Human Rights Commission

Mission Statement

The Mission of the Revere Human Rights Commission is to promote human and civil rights and empower all people of Revere by ensuring that everyone, especially the most vulnerable and marginalized, have equitable opportunities, equal access, and are treated with dignity, respect, fairness, and justice.
—As approved by the Commission members on January 7, 2021 

Event News

Looking for June events? Visit our calendar lower down this page for event flyers. 

June highlights: Juneteenth Freedom Day Celebration on 6/18, Moroccan Festival on 6/25, Tea Dance Party on 6/26 

Monthly Message 

The City of Revere is part of the Massachusetts Municipal Diversity, Equity and Inclusion (DEI) Coalition, with its Chief Officer of Talent and Culture serving as Co-Chair. This is a group of professional DEI practitioners in the local MA government space that share experiences, compare best practices, and support each other through common challenges.

A new DEI Guide written by and for municipal DEI practitioners has been released! Anyone can use this document to inform their practice and to start new conversations with the people around you. Even if you are not a DEI practitioner, the hope is this guide helps you think creatively about how you can contribute to DEI work within the unique context of your role, your community, and your identities. Please share it widely!

The MA Municipal DEI Coalition will continue to discuss these topics, share emerging practices, and provide mutual support. They are dedicated to supporting colleagues in this work, wherever you are in your DEI journey. For updates on this guide or to get in touch for other purposes, please connect with us at madeicoalition@gmail.com. 

• Upcoming Meeting Information
• Members
• Minutes/Videos
• General Info
• Meeting Guidelines
• Documents & Links
• Cultural Awareness Events

Upcoming Meeting Information

Meeting Times

First Thursday of every month at 5pm. All past and ongoing HRC meetings are available on the RevereTV Youtube Page.

All full HRC meetings have a simultaneous Spanish interpretation available from both the Zoom feed and simulcast on RevereTV. At present there will be no in-person Spanish interpretation available. If you have a desire to see subcommittee meetings also with simultaneous interpretation please use the feedback form at the bottom of this page to let us know. 

Next Meeting

The next scheduled meeting is September 1, 2022.

NOTE: Due to temporary absence of a Director and limited clerical support, the HRC will not hold monthly meetings over the summer. However, HRC working groups will continue with projects and post any updates on this webpage. We appreciate your understanding. Enjoy the Summer!

Thank you for your participation in the HRC public meetings. For members of the public who are concerned about their safety, please join us remotely on Zoom. The public Zoom link is at the bottom of our meeting agenda. 

The HRC will do its best to hear from residents during the meetings. Please note that comments must be related to the agenda and follow the direction from the HRC Chair. 

Also, see Guidelines for HRC Meetings and Public Forum below.

Commission Members

Dr. Maritsa Barros

Chief Officer of Talent and Culture

Lynn Alexis

Legal associate at Feinberg, Dumont & Brennan, and Administrative Chief at United States Marine Corps

Rev. Timothy Bogertman

MDiv, MHEd, Senior Pastor of First Congressional Church of Revere

Chris Bright

City of Revere Fire Chief

David Callahan

City of Revere Police Chief

Lourenço Garcia

Assistant Superintendent of Inclusion and Equity, Revere Public Schools

Chai Hossaini

Vice Chair
Active community member, social justice advocate and lead youth organizer of Revere Youth in Action

Janine Grillo Marra

Chair
Founder and owner of Tranquil Flame Yoga & Wellness

Molly M. McGee

Attorney, Revere MA
Immigration & Criminal Law

Rachid Moukhabir

President, MACIR (Moroccan American Connections in Revere)

Kourou Pich

Executive Director, HarborCOV

Kathi Anne Reinstein

Former State Representative and Chief of Government Relations and External Affairs Roca, Inc.

Meeting Minutes & Videos

June 2, 2022 Human Rights Commission Meeting

Watch the full Human Rights Commission meeting.

General HRC Information

How to Contact the Human Rights Commission

To send an email to the members of the Human Rights Commission utilize this form.

Re-Foundation of the Commission

It is the policy of the city of Revere, including its employees, agents and officials, to protect the constitutional, civil and human rights of all people within the city and to promote understanding among individuals and groups in the city through improving the quality of discourse and eliminating unlawful discrimination. —9.28.010 of City Ordinances.

On June 9, 2020, Mayor Brian Arrigo announced the reactivation of the Revere Human Rights Commission. On Thursday, October 1 the new HRC held its first meeting.

As the Commission gets involved in this work this page will be utilized as a resource to publish updates and findings. 

Guidelines for HRC Meetings and Public Forum

1. This is the HRC monthly meeting to discuss and conduct HRC business. It is not a mediation meeting. 

•  If a mediation is requested this will be held with Mayor Arrigo or designee outside of the monthly meeting.

2. The HRC Chair is authorized to set a time limit for speakers, to appoint a representative to speak from a group with similar comments, and to not allow comments which do not pertain to the agenda. 

3. Guests are expected to behave in a manner that respects the civic nature of the proceedings. Indecent or inciteful speech, or behavior that interferes with the conduct of regular business through distraction or interruption of any kind will not be tolerated. See below for elaboration. 

NOTE below, directly from the Open Meeting Law statute, Massachusetts General Laws Chapter 30A, Section 20: 

(f) After notifying the chair of the public body, any person may make a video or audio recording of an open session of a meeting of a public body, or may transmit the meeting through any medium, subject to reasonable requirements of the chair as to the number, placement and operation of equipment used so as not to interfere with the conduct of the meeting. At the beginning of the meeting, the chair shall inform other attendees of any recordings.

(g) No person shall address a meeting of a public body without permission of the chair, and all persons shall, at the request of the chair, be silent. No person shall disrupt the proceedings of a meeting of a public body. If, after clear warning from the chair, a person continues to disrupt the proceedings, the chair may order the person to withdraw from the meeting and if the person does not withdraw, the chair may authorize a constable or other officer to remove the person from the meeting.

4. The HRC has no authority over City employees or officials.

The Mission of the Revere Human Rights Commission is to promote human and civil rights and empower all people of Revere by ensuring that everyone, especially the most vulnerable and marginalized, have equitable opportunities, equal access, and are treated with dignity, respect, fairness, and justice.                                                 —As approved by the Commission members on January 7, 2021

5. This is not a forum to bring a complaint against a HRC member. If a guest has an issue with one of our HRC members, they are directed to address this with the HRC Director, Dr Maritsa Barros, or the appointing authority, Mayor Arrigo.

Documents and Links

Cultural Awareness Events

To add a Cultural and Awareness Event, click on "ADD EVENT" to submit information. Each of these events is reviewed and approved by the Subcommittee Chair of Cultural Holidays and Celebrations and the HRC Chair. Depending on the subcommittee's meeting schedule, events may be presented to the subcommittee members.