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and the program featured the author as a speaker and included students in a cupcake decorating activity. <br /> The Commission has participated in the Southeastern ADL and co-sponsored the Juneteenth Celebration <br /> with the Falmouth NPFH at the Cape Verdean Club. The Commission hopes to work with Yarmouth to <br /> establish a NPFH organization in their community. Ms. Fields added that the ADL has changed the Town <br /> Selectmen required vote that authorized the establishment of NPFH. The change will allow interested <br /> parties to more easily establish NPFH in their community. <br /> Ms. Fields also discussed"h migrant Celebration"which has been sponsored by the Commission during <br /> the last two years. Events occur throughout Cape Cod. Ms. Fields discussed the immigrant community <br /> present on Cape, including H2-B Visa workers and J-1 Student Visa workers, and the differences among <br /> the populations. Generally, H2-B workers may work more menial jobs such as landscaping or hotel work <br /> and may not be college students. The J-1 Student Visa workers may have more challenging positions <br /> working in retail locations. Ms. Fields described a housing program for J-1 Student Visa workers that has <br /> been established in Orleans through the Methodist church. Families housing a student receive $1 OO each <br /> month. Ms. Fields noted that if there was interest in Mashpee, it would not be a difficult program to <br /> establish. Workers in the J-1 Student Visa program typically arrive in the U.S. with a job opportunity and <br /> often work more than one job. Discrimination issues have occurred and there are cases are pending. <br /> Some of the cases involve people working for subcontractors in landscaping or construction who were not <br /> paid for their work. Ms. Fields also noted the difficulty in which immigrant people have had trouble <br /> acquiring their drivers' licenses from local Registries of Motor Vehicles. The Commission worked with <br /> the RMV in Yarmouth to educate the staff about allowing properly credentialed individuals to receive <br /> their licenses. There have also been cases of immigrant bullying in other parts of Massachusetts. <br /> Ms. Fields,discussed issues of assault and battery compared to human rights violations,noting that they <br /> are very closely linked. Police Departments would be actively involved in cases of assault and battery <br /> possibly along with the Commission if the cause was human rights related. Other issues in which the <br /> Human Rights Commission has been involved include landlord/tenant concerns where typically housing <br /> agencies are the first point of contact. <br /> Committee members questioned the ways in which the Human Rights Commission could be contacted by <br /> Cape residents. Ms. Fields responded that the Commission hosts a website and attends public events and <br /> distributes business cards and flyers. The Commission is considering a NPFH sponsored public forum to <br /> discuss issues of discrimination in a larger group. Ms. Vaughn recommended that the Commission <br /> consider a monthly column in the newspaper. Ms. Vaughn also noted that the Mashpee High School <br /> paper is inserted in the Enterprise once each month and can be contacted at ri -Lshpg, <br /> Ms. Farren questioned the possibility of co-sponsoring events with Sandwich and Ms. Fields <br /> recommended contacting Cindy Denmat of the Sandwich NPFH. Ms. Fields added that the Affirmative <br /> Action Committee should contact the Police Department because there should be representation from the <br /> Police on the Committee. Ms. Fields recommended attending the Barnstable NPFH meeting or speaking <br /> with Janice Barton from the Barnstable Town Council about their group. Representatives from both the <br /> Police and Fire Department are regular attendees of the meetings. Ms. Brown expressed interest in <br /> attending the meeting. <br /> Invited Guest-Lucille Boco,Student to Assist with MLK Day <br /> Ms.Boco is an actively involved student at Mashpee High School, and a member of the school's Human <br /> Rights Club, and has expressed interest in coordinating the Martin Luther King Day Pancake Breakfast, <br /> "Pancakes for Peace,"for her Senior Project. Through the program, Ms. Boco wishes to raise awareness <br /> about diversity, discrimination and bullying throughout the community of Mashpee. Ms. Boco hopes to <br /> deliver a speech about diversity and its importance, which she distributed to Committee members. Ms. <br /> Farren questioned the size of the Human Rights Club to which Ms. Boco responded that the group is just <br /> ust <br /> 2 <br />