Joliet Township (ECWd) –
After discovering Joliet Township went into a closed meeting on June 11, 2019 to discuss Road District personnel, we requested the minutes and audio recording from that closed meeting.
After some delay, the minutes and recording were provided.
Generally, closed meeting minutes and recordings are not available to the public unless released by the Board, however, we alleged this meeting was in violation of the Open Meetings Act because the stated reason for closed session was to discuss Road District personnel. Those personnel belong to the Road District (a separate public body) – not the Township – and any discussion in closed session by the Township violates the OMA.
This recording gives us plenty of things to write about, here is one of them:
As Joliet Township Supervisor Dan Vera was refering to past Animal Control personnel in the meeting, he called animal control employees the “10 Little Indians” and took pride in firing all of them, one at a time, over a 2-year period.
Listen to it:
According to “The History of the ‘Ten Little Indians’” the phrase “intended to define Indians as “inferior” and “backward.” The song coupled the Anglo-constructed definition of “savage” with American Indian consciousness, but the ultimate legacy of this children’s nursery rhyme was the systematic murdering of Indians, leaving “One little Indian boy livin’ all alone”
Shameful.
.
8 Comments
Boutdamntyme
Posted at 01:55h, 31 DecemberDoes anyone know when it became legal for an elected official to order a department head to write up an employee for criticizing said elected official? This wasn’t done directly to Vera’s face but to the department head, who in turn, reported the mean employee to Vera. The department head was then given direct orders to write up the meanie for “not having respect for a person in an authoritative position” Just was wondering if that’s legal.
Mary
Posted at 02:31h, 30 DecemberThis guy has got to go.
SMH
Posted at 23:23h, 28 DecemberDid he “we blew up the country club”? Did he call them 10 little Indians? Well what do you call a township supervisor that has road district employees build a retaining wall on his private property during work hours? …. One big dummy and one big felon. Shame on him, shame on him.
Mary Carlisle
Posted at 21:05h, 28 DecemberWhy did he want to fire all of them?
SMH
Posted at 23:19h, 28 DecemberBecause he is a dictator
Bear
Posted at 08:19h, 29 DecemberTo put his personal puppets in place so he could boss them around and have total control. Vera loves the non- thinking kind easier to manipulate!! Sprinkle in a couple of his cronies and wham-o, no push back!
Animal control director demoted to Veras personal secretary with no pay cut ? Making almost double of the previous (girlfriends) I mean secretary’s
Long history of chopping heads in multiple departments, time to chop Veras!
Boutdamntyme
Posted at 01:36h, 31 DecemberHe fired them because he doesn’t want employees that have more knowledge of their job than he has. He’s a very insecure person and he doesn’t want anyone to question his knowledge, or his ability to lead. It’s kind of odd that the “10 Little Indians” he fired were long time (half were 10+ years) employees that were very NON political and were NOT hired by him. So, I guess he “blew up the clubhouse” years ago, only to create his very own, corrupt clubhouse.
Mickey’s mouse
Posted at 16:39h, 31 DecemberNo no no you got it all wrong! Dan knows everything just ask him!!! He needed to have his own director in place pay her double,and have the former director try to train her but … well she couldn’t hack it, so for her troubles she’s now his personal secretary still making the same money!! She couldn’t spell cat if ya gave her the K and the T.. let alone secretarial duties