Inclusion and transparency are the keys to moving forward with the City of Windsor's Our City, Our Culture Anti-Racism Programming Proposal.
That's according to Black Council of Windsor-Essex member and historian Irene Moore-Davis.
Her response comes after the Multicultural Council of Windsor and Essex County (MCC) pulled out of the $200,000 project Thursday.
City council voted to hand the project over to the group, but several groups were upset they weren't included in the planning process and applications from the community weren't sought.
The MCC decided, "the project has become political and divisive, no longer reflecting the spirit, intent, and purpose of the initiative."
Moore-Davis says publically selecting a committee or group for the plan will be the only way forward.
"I think that I'm not alone when I talk about the concern that I had when I heard that a major contract of this kind was given to an agency of which the senior team includes a sitting city councillor and that this happened secretly without anyone else really knowing about it," says Moore-Davis.
In a statement, Mayor Drew Dilkens said it's, "clear additional work will be required prior to deciding how to proceed."
Moore-Davis says that work will have to be done transparently.
"What's important is that the mayor, the mayor's office and perhaps city council and the city's Diversity Committee, need to be at a table with members of the community that are effected by racism in Windsor and hear from them as whole ... That's the way for this to be done," she added.
She says the process is destined to fail a second time if the city doesn't seek outside opinions.
"We want to make sure everyone feels valued and welcome, to let them know that they belong at the table. That's what anti-racism is all about," she says. "We never want to see people just getting together and saying 'okay, this sounds good to us so it must be the right thing,' you have to consult with people."
Dilkens expressed his disappointment saying "the comments made to denigrate the work of the MCC and their staff crossed the line and took on an increasingly personal and nasty tone" in recent weeks.
Moore-Davis says opinions on the procurement process and the execution of the plan are not a slight against the MCC as the group continues to provide invaluable services to the community.
Ward 1 Councillor Fred Francis works at the MCC, but declared a conflict on the plan and recused himself from the decision making process.
The plan was meant to provide training initiatives, internships and mentorships, bursaries and scholarships, development grants and heritage interpretation and storytelling.
With files from Rob Hindi