Last year as a response to the continuous racial strife that was occurring across the country, the Prince William Board of County Supervisors developed the Racial and Social Justice Commission. Its purpose was, according to the resolution passed in November, “to study and propose solutions for racial and social justice issues and experiences within the County, and provide an opportunity to conduct a series of dialogues about racial justice with the community, other local governments, and agencies and organizations; to identify areas of concern.” After the Commission’s initial meeting earlier this month at the Ferlazzo Building, they established their leadership board, and under the guidance of Commissioner Shantell Rock, are ready to move forward.

Rock spoke with the PW Perspective earlier this week about what it means to be in this position. Being [Commissioner] is “A passion I’ve had for quite some time,” said Rock. “We’ve been charged to report back to the Board of County Supervisors on racial disparities within policing, education and other public services.”

Appointed to the Commission by Woodbridge Supervisor Margaret Franklin, the longtime paralegal has years of leadership experience in preparing for this positions.

“Although is is my first time as commissioner, this is not my first time in leadership. We are a diverse group and I have an open door policy to hear all of their ideas. We are only communicating via email for now due to the pandemic, but the communication has been good among the team since we started.”

She continues on to discuss the goals of the group. “This is a non-partisan commission, and we will do a lot of fact-finding to demonstrate to the board that racism does exist in Prince William County. If the facts prove otherwise, we will report that as well. The commission will serve in a variety of committees, from education equity to government.”

“We want to hear from the public, their voice matters. Hopefully they will come with open ears, minds and hearts for change. Otherwise it will be a challenge to deal with the realities of racism.”

On February 22nd Rock will be joining Congressman Gerry Connolly for a roundtable discussion on dealing with issues within the community.

“There are some youth that are on the roundtable as well, and we need to hear from them. They are going to take the mantle from us one day and listening to what they have to say is important.”

For more information on the Commission, visit their website.