Huntington Beach leadership is ending the city’s current heritage and identity commemorations, such as Women’s History Month, and in their place will create celebrations focused more on the community’s history.
The City Council’s majority on Tuesday night directed city staffers to develop a history program, with monthly themes that include the founding of the city, the discovery of oil and celebrating local libraries. The city in 2024 won’t formally celebrate Black History Month, Women’s History Month or Pride Month.
Previous monthly themes or celebrations will be superseded by the new themes the council put forth.
Some heritage and identity celebrations could be included in future years, said Councilmember Casey McKeon, who was one of the three councilmembers proposing the changes. “Nothing precludes those events from being a part of that future calendar.”
Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark and councilmembers McKeon and Pat Burns wrote in their report submitting the proposal that it “would be intended to be free of any identity politics and political agendas.”
Themes included by the councilmembers are the founding of Huntington Beach, California history and “what it means to be a charter city,” “We Love Our Libraries,” the discovery of oil in the city, surfing and preserving nature.
Van Der Mark asked for a Holocaust remembrance to be included in the January celebration.
Kathie Schey called the proposal a thinly veiled vote of no confidence in the city’s Historic Resources Board, a committee she chairs, and announced her resignation during public comment.
“God knows I’m all about celebrating history, right?” Schey said. “This is just peculiar, for want of a better word. Both the approach of the plan and the items that are listed here.”
McKeon said Huntington Beach has a rich history that he’s been learning about “and I can only imagine that the majority of our residents are unaware of.” And that, he said, pushed him…
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