Beverly City Mayor Mike Cahill has hired new directors among them a Kenyan woman Wangari Fahari for the Council on Aging, Public Health Department, Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging, or DEIB. Beverly is a city in Essex County, Massachusetts, and a suburb of Boston.
Fahari, 36, is an artist and music business executive who said she uses art, music and culture to work for positive social change. She has worked with Beverly Main Streets on arts programming and as a BIPOC/ALAANA social justice leader at the Zen Center North Shore. Fahari grew up in Kenya and has lived in Beverly since 2016.
“I feel honored that the city has trusted me in this position,” Fahari said. “It’s all about building trust to begin with. I know it’s something that we can’t do overnight, but I also understand that now more than ever it is very necessary. I’m very open to learning from the community.”
The city created the position of Diversity, Equity and Inclusion director in 2021 in the aftermath of the George Floyd murder. Abu Toppin served in the job before leaving in March 2022 for the private sector, and the position was vacant for the last year while the city searched for a new director.
Cahill said Fahari recommended that the city add the ‘B’ for belonging to the DEI acronym, to reflect a change that is being made in the wider DEIB movement. He said Fahari will help lead the effort to implement changes in city government that were recommended in a racial equity audit that the city commissioned last year.
“It’s taken some time to find Wangari and I’m really appreciative that we have because she brings an incredible set of talents to the work,” Cahill said.
Source-https://www.salemnews.com/
Kenyan Woman Wangari Fahari Among Directors Hired by Beverly City in US
