A severing of human relations

While the Orange County Human Relations Commission rallies its

troops to convince the Board of Supervisors to spare them from the

chopping block, there is at least a handful of Costa Mesans who can’t

help but flash a devilish grin.

It must be karma, many people think, as the county commission

faces the intense scrutiny it has often placed on others.

Because of the state budget crisis, county officials are readying

for “the perfect storm,” which insiders describe as a culmination of

sagging revenues, rising program costs, the shifting of state

mandates to counties, an increase in population and program needs.

Chopping the $437,000 spent on the commission would help weather

that tempest, county budget experts argue.

An Orange County Budget Committee has placed the Orange County

Human Relations Commission on the list for possible cuts from the

2003-04 fiscal budget. County insiders say the recommendation to

eliminate the commission is one of many proposals to save some money.

To land on the endangered list, certain programs were deemed by

county department heads to not be of “core” importance.

Although he’ll never admit it for publication, I can only imagine

the feeling of vindication Councilman Allan Mansoor feels as he

watches county human relations bureaucrats squirm in their seats,

worrying they might lose them.

Mansoor, who sat on the city’s Human Relations Committee before

November’s election, was the target of attacks by members of a local

gay and lesbian organization who called him homophobic and

intolerant. Rusty Kennedy, the president of the Orange County Human

Relations Commission, which partners with the city committee,

publicly called for Mansoor’s resignation.

When I called Mansoor on Friday, I expected a spicy quote full of

loathing and I told you sos -- somewhere along the lines of “Nah,

nah, nah, nah, nah.”

I didn’t get it.

“Now, I never said I didn’t like them,” Mansoor told me in his

perfect politician’s voice. “But I do think some things should be

funded privately.”

I probed a little deeper. What about their involvement with the

whole human relations scandal last year, I asked.

“I don’t think they should be involved in politics,” Mansoor said.

“It seems they have caused more problems than they have solved.”

That’s more like it. I reminded him about Kennedy’s public call

for his removal in April. A little flare raised in his voice and the

tempo quickened. Here it comes, my killer quote. My fingertips waited

anxiously atop the keyboard.

“Mr. Kennedy never said what it was I said or did that was so

wrong,” he began, but then stopped.

So close, but I had to face the fact that Mansoor was a bona fide

politician now, and he wouldn’t go as far as he did on election

night.

“I feel vindicated by this win,” Mansoor said on Nov. 5.

“Considering all that Human Relations Committee baloney and those

people who tried to send me packing, I feel really vindicated. I’m

still here, and they are going to have to try much harder next time.”

But Kennedy and his county cohorts may not have a next time if the

recommended cuts are made. Certain Costa Mesans couldn’t be happier

about that.

“I’ve never been a big fan of theirs and have not felt they have

done anything positive in Costa Mesa,” Councilman Gary Monahan said.

“I thought they had a political agenda rather than an honest service

agenda.”

Resident Janice Davidson, an active political insider who helped

create a city-based chat site, blames the county Human Relations

Commission for the ultimate demise of the Web site. It was on that

chat site that people claim Mansoor, Davidson and another Human

Relations Committee member, Joel Faris, made intolerant remarks.

Members of the county commission took the initiative to log on and

see for themselves what was being said -- or not said.

“They stuck their nose in business that was none of theirs to

begin with” and ruined a perfectly good method of communication,

Davidson said. Regular members of the now defunct chat site also hold

the same beliefs. Even those who are not necessarily politically

aligned with Davidson and her camp of “improvers” feel the county

commission overstepped its bounds.

“I’m disappointed that Janice Davidson shut down the site,”

resident Geoff West wrote in an e-mail. “It provided some very

interesting dialogue on some pretty important issues. Yes, there were

some vile things posted from time to time, but most of the postings

were well reasoned and topical. Too bad the county Human Relations

Commission had to inject itself into the situation.”

There are those who will mourn the loss of the county commission,

such as Mayor Karen Robinson and Councilwoman Libby Cowan, who pushed

hard to convince council members to pay the $7,000 annual dues to

become a “contributing partner in [the county’s Human Relations]

efforts.”

Cowan said Friday the state budget crisis is being used by county

politicians as an excuse to get rid of the commission.

“I think it will be a terrible shame if the county uses this to

close it down.” Cowan said.

Cowan said the commission has done tremendous work and the small

difference it will make in the bottom line does not warrant the

negative effects of losing it.

“I’d hate to see it not funded,” Cowan said. “I think it sends a

message that we as a county value each person as a contributing

member of our community.”

Mansoor, Monahan and the like argue that that’s a pretty expensive

message.

“They’ve got to look for cuts in light of the state budget just

like anybody else,” Mansoor said.

And although it didn’t come across loud and clear, I like to think

that somewhere deep down, under the political rhetoric, I heard the

faint sound of gloating. A little Bronx cheer and a “serves you

right.”

* LOLITA HARPER writes columns Mondays, Wednesdays and Fridays

and covers culture and the arts. She may be reached at (949) 574-4275

or by e-mail at lolita.harper@latimes.com.