Mundelein diversity panel to return

Mundelein officials and local activists are seeking to re-establish and revamp the town's long-dormant human relations commission as a way to celebrate the community's diversity.

The commission was founded in 1962 to deal with fair-housing issues, but it's been inactive for years, Village Trustee Terri Voss said. But Voss and other organizers hope the group will promote community spirit and foster positive community relations.

"I think this is going to be the next step in promoting a (broader) understanding of the cultural pieces we have in our community," said Mundelein High School District 120 board member Vicky Kennedy, a member of the organizing committee.

The village board on Monday moved the revamp concept forward by directing the village staff to rewrite the original ordinance creating the commission. If eventually approved by the board, the amendment will widen the panel's scope to handle diversity-related issues and make the group more active.

Like many of Chicago's suburbs, Mundelein's population is a racially and ethnically diverse one. Nearly 29 percent of the population was Hispanic as of 2005, according to a Lake County Partners report. More than 7 percent was Asian at that time, and nearly 2 percent was black.

"We want to promote the fact -- and be proud of the fact -- that we have such a diverse community," Kennedy said.

Libertyville and Highland Park are among the few Lake County suburbs with human relations commissions. Like Mundelein's, Libertyville's three-member panel was formed to investigate fair-housing issues, but it's been inactive for years, member Gary Holland said. Highland Park's group has a broader mission that focuses on the causes of prejudice and possible solutions, according to its official Web page.

Aurora, Elgin, Evanston and Skokie are among the communities outside the county with human relations commissions.

Mundelein's efforts to revitalize its commission earned praise from the Rev. Clyde Brooks, president of the Arlington Heights-based Illinois Commission on Diversity and Human Relations.

"We live in a global world," Brooks said. "I salute the few (groups) that have stepped up to the plate. It certainly is needed."

Brooks was disappointed Mundelein's commission has been dormant but said "it is never too late to do the right thing."