Arlington County Board members slapped them down – hard – just months ago for swimming outside their lane.
And now there might be another jurisdictional battle shaping up when it comes to the county’s appointed Human Rights Commission.
Commission members on May 9 are expected to consider their options in weighing in on the current Mideast situation, having been asked by pro-Palestinian activists to support a resolution calling for a ceasefire between Israel and the Hamas forces that govern Gaza.
If the commission does move forward aggressively, it could bring further tension with Arlington elected officials – who for now are staying silent on the matter.
Based on comments at the commission’s April meeting when the matter was first broached, some members believe they do have jurisdiction, and even a moral imperative, to confront the issue.
“It should be on our docket,” commission member Fatima Argun said, calling it “something that definitely should be considered.”
On the opposite end of the spectrum was commission member Steven Krieger.
“This is the ‘Arlington’ Human Rights Commission,” he said. “This is not happening in Arlington.”
Krieger suggested those who wanted county-level action on the matter needed to make their views known to elected officials.
“We’re not the County Board,” he said.
But Krieger seemed to be swimming upstream against a tide that was either supportive of moving forward on the matter, or willing to at least consider it.
“We don’t need to weigh in now [but] I’m interested in learning more,” commission member Wanda Younger said at the April 11 meeting.
What form any Human Rights Commission action might take remains a work in progress. The body will “make a decision in May,” commission chair Bill Rice said.
Advocates of a ceasefire resolution did attend the subsequent County Board meeting on April 20, where they received more sympathetic consideration than had been the case when they last appeared February with calls for a ceasefire.
In February, demands of the protesters were dismissed out of hand as being outside the scope of local government. In April, County Board members telegraphed they were more amenable to addressing the issue, but now seem to be trying to find a way to stay out of it.
Earlier this year, the Human Rights Commission found itself in hot water with the County Board after summarily dispatching a letter to the U.S. Department of Justice, calling for an investigation of jail operations in the county. County Board members quickly sent their own letter to the department, disavowing the action.
The County Board’s 2024 liaison to the commission, Matt de Ferranti, has only sporadically appeared at its meetings in recent months. Though not uncommon for County Board members (who have multiple commission-liaison assignments to juggle), it has at times rendered him unable to provide on-the-spot guidance on how the County Board might view any actions taken by the panel.
Queried by the GazetteLeader, County Board Chairman Libby Garvey deferred to de Ferranti on the matter. De Ferranti declined to comment on the evolving situation.
