CARMICHAEL, CA (MPG) - With racial tensions dominating much of the news, the Carmichael Chamber of Commerce last week sponsored an on-screen town hall intended as a “Healing conversation.” The event offered the mike to women who discussed the challenges of being African American moms and business professionals in predominantly white communities.

Featured speaker was Dr. Felicia Haecker, a decorated US Air Force veteran of three Middle East deployments. The Carmichael resident is now CEO of Dog Tag Divas, an organization that supports women veterans. She is also a professor at Brandman University, (Roseville) where she teaches Organizational Leadership. 

“Ten days from now, the inequities of our US system won’t be solved,” Haecker told an on-line audience of more than 5000. “But because we’re here tonight with the intention to listening might mean we’ll see change ten years from now. Change could all start with the conversation we’re having tonight.”

Haecker is married to a Federal investigator who is Austrian-Italian. Their bi-racial children attend St John the Evangelist Catholic School in Carmichael. She said she and fellow speakers were not taking part in the town hall to benefit themselves. “We’re here for our children,” she said.  “And for all children -- so the futures they all deserve will be a reality.”

Haecker has experienced racism in Carmichael. When the law officer’s wife was accused by a stranger (in a supermarket parking lot) of being anti-police, she calmly pointed out her car’s pro-police sticker and wished her accuser a nice day. But she was recently brought to tears by kindness. “I was running one morning and a woman came out of her house and told me: ‘I see you, and you matter to me.’ I broke down. It was a small action but it meant the world to me. We all need to start seeing each other for what we really are. The USA is a beautiful tapestry made up from all these beautiful cultural threads. If we don’t acknowledge them all, we’re missing the point. If we learn about one another, we can appreciate and move forward together.”

“I am hoping Carmichael can be a beacon,” she said. “We can show the rest of the nation what's possible through recognizing and reaching out to all members of our community and including everyone in the fold.”

The webinar included comments from Dr Arika Spencer-Brown and Rhonda Staley Brooks. This program may be viewed at the Carmichael Chamber of Commerce Facebook page. Learn about future Chamber events at www.carmichaelchamber.com