Official citywide observances of Black History will no longer occur in Huntington Beach, Calif., after a decision by the city to do away with such celebrations.

According to the , Black History Month along with other monthly heritage-themed commemorations such as Hispanic Heritage, Women’s History and Pride Months will not be formally honored in favor of focusing on the history of the city. On Tuesday (Dec 19), city staffers were tasked with developing a history program that centers on “the founding of the city, the discovery of oil, and celebrating local libraries” to replace diversity celebrations.

Councilmember Casey McKeon, who was one of the three council members proposing the changes noted that the observances could take place  

“Nothing precludes those events from being a part of that future calendar,” McKeon said.

In their official report, Mayor Gracey Van Der Mark, McKeon, and Councilmember Pat Burns explicitly wrote that their proposal “would be intended to be free of any identity politics and political agendas.”

Additionally, Van Der Mark requested that the city’s celebration in January include a Holocaust memorial.

Kathie Schey, who chairs the Historic Resources Board of the city, announced her resignation during public comment because of the council’s decision.

“God knows I’m all about celebrating history, right?” Schey explained “This is just peculiar, for want of a better word. Both the approach of the plan and the items that are listed here.”

Councilmember Natalie Moser stated that developing a comprehensive program is not where the city or council should be focusing its attention because it would involve “confronting darker chapters” of the city’s history.

“I think that this proposal, while perhaps rooted in good intention, raises fundamental questions about the role of our council and priorities of our city,” Moser argued.

Agreeing with Moser’s sentiments, Councilmember Dan Kalmick said a lot of the proposed history that the city wants to honor has nothing to do with Huntington’s story. 

“Some of this is not relevant to Huntington Beach,” Kalmick said. “Revolutionary War? We weren’t even part of the British territory at the time … I don’t know why there is a rush to implement some of this.”

This is the latest example of the Republican majority of  Huntington City Council rolling back diversity  The council voted in February to ban flying the LGBTQ+ Pride Flag and other flags on government property only allowing “city, state, national and prisoner of war banners” to be flown.

In September, the council voted to dissolve the city’s Human Relations committee – which sought to combat hate crimes.