Broken System: Nisky Racial Equity Task Force convened for secret meeting by white man

The Observer has learned that Niskayuna's Racial Equity Task Force met last night in an unannounced, secret meeting convened by white, male panel member Jon Lemelin.

The meeting, which as of 10 PM on Wednesday evening was not listed on the town's meeting schedule as legally required,

The Town's meeting schedule as of 10 PM
on Wednesday night, with no public notification of the
Racial Equity Task Force meeting (click to enlarge)

violated New York's Open Meetings Law, which mandates 72 hours notice of any meetings be given to the public and news media.  The law unambiguously applies to all public bodies, and committees or subcommittees thereof, no matter whether elected or appointed, at all levels of government in New York.  

The template circulated by Niskayuna
schools alumni (click to enlarge)

Lemelin's appointment, along with the committee's other white members, set off a social media firestorm in Niskayuna, particularly amongst college-aged alumni of Niskayuna High School, who expressed outrage that qualified applicants of color were passed over.  Two alumni organized a campaign urging Town Board members to vote against confirmation of the Task Force's membership, circulating a template to be used while writing e-mails to Town Board members.

The Task Force's first meeting was legally scheduled for August 26th, as noted on the town's schedule, but the group was convened last night, in violation of state law, at the insistence of Lemelin.  This left residents, reporters, and interested people of color unaware that the meeting was taking place, and rendered viewing the meeting impossible for non-members, as no public video stream was made available.

At a time when residents are calling for the white members of the Task Force to resign, it's baffling that one white male seems to have been put in charge of the group.  Who empowered him?  Why wasn't the public told about this meeting?