4o) Approval of Agreement with Elizabeth "Liz" Barney in the Amount of $150,000 to Provide Social Media, Web Design, and Training Services for the Mendocino County Sheriff's Office for the Term of January 1, 2021 through December 31, 2023, with the Option to Extend the Agreement for up to Three Additional One-Year Periods
Thank you for providing the ability to provide public comment. I strongly oppose the continuation of the contract with Elizabeth "Liz" Barney because evidence has been presented on the content of her Parler account (see: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MendocinoCounty4thDistrict/permalink/2925015184398676) that indicates she has expressed and disseminated views that qualify as hate speech and public health disinformation, and this indicates that she would be unfit to serve in any capacity disseminating information for the public good. It is crucially important to point out that I have no desire to censor Ms. Barney's views nor do I believe the Board has the legal capacity to do so (regardless of whether we personally believing that they are flatly wrong). However, as a member of the constituency on whose behalf she works, I must make it clear that I find her actions to make her unfit to serve objectively. Errors of judgement to that extreme cannot be overlooked when making this decision.
In addition, I personally would implore the Board to take this opportunity to rethink the need for this position at all. I feel that the value added by social media, web design, and training services is worth far less to our community than $75,000 dollars per year, and that those funds could be far better spent on a role that centers engagement of those in our community most affected by the police.
Thank you again for carefully considering the content of each of these public comments in your decision.
Public institutions contribute to structural racism by hiring those that uphold values that oppress community members.
We cannot create a false dichotomy that simply doing ones job with tax payers' money can be divorced from publicly held opinions that denigrate portions of that community. Allowing this contract will reinforce distrust, disdain, and may result in unforeseeable harm to community members needing to access MCSD information, resources and services. Funding streams and the opinions and practices of staff members are interrelated. This matters. This county should not be considering awarding taxpayers dollars to those that cannot equitably embrace the safety, wellbeing, and concerns for all county citizens. It is a special oxymoron to award a communications contract to someone whose communication is fraught with ill will and values counter to the well being of MC residents.
I join with hundreds of others to object to the hiring of Liz Barney whose personal views are so repellent to me, my family, friends, and many Covelo community members. The personal beliefs of this woman are hers to hold but anyone in public service who opposes mask wearing, believing it is a symbol of Antifa, who supports the murder of public officials, should not be receiving support or in the employ of county agencies where she can promulgate this kind of hatred and division. As a tax payer or 47 years in this county, I insist that you find staff who are not a danger to the ongoing well being of our citizens. My husband and I entreat you to revoke any contract that you have imagined with this woman and find another consultant who cherishes the safety, well being and human rights of all the citizens of this country. .
Thanks you for you service and for your support for the safety and health of your constituents.
Paula and Larry Fugman
PO Box 194
Covelo, CA 95428
pfugman@gmail.com
Do not renew Liz Barney's contract.
Liz Barney has shown that she holds racist and anti-scientific through extremely concerning posts and memes on her public Parler account.
I don't trust her to properly and objectively share information or teach anyone about how to optimize social media usage.
I do not trust Liz Barney to disseminate accurate information OR to educate anyone about how best to use social media.
She has decided that it is appropriate for her to ask for Mossad to Assassinate a U.S. congresswoman, share racist memes, advocate a new civil war, and more all on her public Parler account.
Liz Barney was contracted to work for the county to disseminate information to the public and I do not have confidence that she can do her job objectively. She is not the person who should be in that job, and her contract is up for renewal next week .
Her Parler account is full of racist and dangerous far-right views, including one that calls for Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan's assassination. She believes that mask-wearing is a symbol of ANTIFA.
Mask wearing isn’t a political statement or choice, it’s a matter of Public Health.
Liz has the right to believe what she does, we all do, but when someone works in service of the public, they should be held to a higher standard: employed, contracted, or otherwise.
Thank you for providing the ability to provide public comment. I strongly oppose the continuation of the contract with Elizabeth "Liz" Barney because evidence has been presented on the content of her Parler account (see: https://www.facebook.com/groups/MendocinoCounty4thDistrict/permalink/2925015184398676) that indicates she has expressed and disseminated views that qualify as hate speech and public health disinformation, and this indicates that she would be unfit to serve in any capacity disseminating information for the public good. It is crucially important to point out that I have no desire to censor Ms. Barney's views nor do I believe the Board has the legal capacity to do so (regardless of whether we personally believing that they are flatly wrong). However, as a member of the constituency on whose behalf she works, I must make it clear that I find her actions to make her unfit to serve objectively. Errors of judgement to that extreme cannot be overlooked when making this decision.
In addition, I personally would implore the Board to take this opportunity to rethink the need for this position at all. I feel that the value added by social media, web design, and training services is worth far less to our community than $75,000 dollars per year, and that those funds could be far better spent on a role that centers engagement of those in our community most affected by the police.
Thank you again for carefully considering the content of each of these public comments in your decision.
William and Claire Stedden
Fort Bragg, CA
Public institutions contribute to structural racism by hiring those that uphold values that oppress community members.
We cannot create a false dichotomy that simply doing ones job with tax payers' money can be divorced from publicly held opinions that denigrate portions of that community. Allowing this contract will reinforce distrust, disdain, and may result in unforeseeable harm to community members needing to access MCSD information, resources and services. Funding streams and the opinions and practices of staff members are interrelated. This matters. This county should not be considering awarding taxpayers dollars to those that cannot equitably embrace the safety, wellbeing, and concerns for all county citizens. It is a special oxymoron to award a communications contract to someone whose communication is fraught with ill will and values counter to the well being of MC residents.
Dear Representative of Mendocino County,
I join with hundreds of others to object to the hiring of Liz Barney whose personal views are so repellent to me, my family, friends, and many Covelo community members. The personal beliefs of this woman are hers to hold but anyone in public service who opposes mask wearing, believing it is a symbol of Antifa, who supports the murder of public officials, should not be receiving support or in the employ of county agencies where she can promulgate this kind of hatred and division. As a tax payer or 47 years in this county, I insist that you find staff who are not a danger to the ongoing well being of our citizens. My husband and I entreat you to revoke any contract that you have imagined with this woman and find another consultant who cherishes the safety, well being and human rights of all the citizens of this country. .
Thanks you for you service and for your support for the safety and health of your constituents.
Paula and Larry Fugman
PO Box 194
Covelo, CA 95428
pfugman@gmail.com
Do not renew Liz Barney's contract.
Liz Barney has shown that she holds racist and anti-scientific through extremely concerning posts and memes on her public Parler account.
I don't trust her to properly and objectively share information or teach anyone about how to optimize social media usage.
I do not trust Liz Barney to disseminate accurate information OR to educate anyone about how best to use social media.
She has decided that it is appropriate for her to ask for Mossad to Assassinate a U.S. congresswoman, share racist memes, advocate a new civil war, and more all on her public Parler account.
Please do not renew her contract.
Liz Barney was contracted to work for the county to disseminate information to the public and I do not have confidence that she can do her job objectively. She is not the person who should be in that job, and her contract is up for renewal next week .
Her Parler account is full of racist and dangerous far-right views, including one that calls for Congresswoman Rashida Tlaib of Michigan's assassination. She believes that mask-wearing is a symbol of ANTIFA.
Mask wearing isn’t a political statement or choice, it’s a matter of Public Health.
Liz has the right to believe what she does, we all do, but when someone works in service of the public, they should be held to a higher standard: employed, contracted, or otherwise.