Democratic lawmakers and Democratic Congressional Campaign Committee (DCCC) staffers are calling for an immediate restructuring of the organization to ensure greater racial diversity among its senior leadership, Politico reported Monday.
DCCC chairwoman Cheri Bustos was forced to return to Washington, D.C. over the weekend after Politico published a report last week detailing the staff’s discontent over what they see as Bustos’s failure to prioritize racial diversity – a perception made more salient by the recent departure of her chief of staff, a woman of color.
Bustos held a conference call on Saturday to address the recent report but it seems to have done little to assuage the concerns of Democratic lawmakers, two of whom called for the immediate dismissal of DCCC executive director Allison Jaslow.
“The DCCC is now in complete chaos,”, Democratic Texas representatives Vicente Gonzalez and Filemon Vela in a statement to Politico. “The single most immediate action that Cheri Bustos can take to restore confidence in the organization and to promote diversity is to appoint a qualified person of color, of which there are many, as executive director at once. We find the silence of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus on this issue to be deafening.”
In response to the outcry, Bustos returned from a previously scheduled trip to Washington and has agreed to schedule a racial diversity training session for her staff.
“Chairwoman Bustos is coming back because she understands how important it is for her to hear from staff directly and to reassure them that we have a strong commitment to diversity and inclusion at every level,” said DCCC spokesman Jared Smith.
“She plans to approve changes to the structure before she leaves town and wants to get staff input as we work to build a stronger DCCC and make sure our team, from senior leadership on down, reflects the full range of diversity that gives the Democratic Party its strength,” Smith added. “She looks forward to reaching out to her colleagues to get their input, address their concerns and update them on the progress we are making.”
Jaslow reportedly wept as she took responsibility for the organization’s lack of diversity during an emergency meeting on Friday.
During the conference call Saturday, Bustos reportedly emphasized her commitment to diversity in her personal life, noting that her husband is Mexican and her son is marrying an African-American woman. It remains unclear what, if any, further steps will be taken to increase diversity among the organization’s leadership.