South Carolina city budgets $50K for diversity training after backlash over official's posts

GREENVILLE, S.C. — A South Carolina city will spend $50,000 toward diversity and inclusion training and initiatives following upheaval in the community over social media posts shared by a local official earlier this summer.

The city council of Mauldin unanimously approved the funding at its meeting this week, with $25,000 to go toward council training and initiatives "related to diversity and inclusion" and another $25,000 to go toward staff training "related to civility, diversity, and inclusion."

The money was part of $1.6 million in surplus funds the city had available following the conclusion of this past fiscal year, said Councilman Michael Reynolds, who introduced the measure as the chairman of the council's Finance Committee.

Mauldin has had a summer of protests and calls for Councilman Dale Black to resign after he shared several posts on social media, including one that equated Black organizations to the Confederate flag. The city approved a resolution in July directed at developing diversity-related training and initiatives in the wake of this situation and with this move Mauldin now has a funding mechanism for those efforts.

Councilman Black and Mayor Terry Merritt did not return calls from The Greenville News seeking comment for this story, but Councilman Reynolds told The News the idea is to ensure a healthier public dialogue.

“What transpired was offensive, it was hurtful and that can often times cause a misunderstanding," Reynolds said.

He said with this move he wanted to make sure the city had funding available “so we don’t have to sit on the issue longer than we should."

“I think it’s important because we can be so harmful without listening first," Reynolds said. "It’s much more my intent to listen to people. I think especially when you’re dealing with race issues."

The allocation of funding for diversity training was viewed as a positive step by some members of the community that have been critical of the city's reaction to Black's social media posts so far.

Robert Simpson, Rodney Neely and Samuel Neely, who are all part of a group Mauldin religious leaders that have called for more action from the city, each said they viewed the city's funding allocation this week as a positive step.

“I think that was a real positive move, gesture for this city," said Rodney Neely, who pressed the city last month to make more progress on diversity and race-related initiatives in the city.

“They’re showing effort," he said. “That means they care about how we feel, that’s what’s important."

Simpson, who spoke at the meeting this week, continuing to urge Black to resign from his post on council, said afterward that he too felt the city's funding for diversity training was a "great start."

“When you add diversity training, that means you want to change, you want to make it right," Simpson said. "I think that piece will help the city of Mauldin really come together because they are showing effort."

Follow Gabe Cavallaro on Twitter @gabe_cavallaro.

This article originally appeared on Greenville News: South Carolina city budgets $50K for diversity training after protests