SALEM — Gov. Kate Brown didn’t shut Eastern Oregon out of the Racial Justice Council, appointing Confederated Tribes of the Umatilla Indian Reservation Deputy Director Chuck Sams to a new body created to tackle racism in Oregon.

According to a July 31 press release, the council will “examine and begin to dismantle” policies that have created racial disparities in incarceration, the criminal justice system, health care, housing, the economy and education.

“For far too long, Oregon’s Black, Indigenous and People of Color and Tribal members haven’t had a seat at the table,” Brown said in a statement. “The urgency could not be greater to center the voices of those who are most impacted by historical and institutional racism in Oregon and create a better system — together — that fully supports us all. Our budgets, policy agenda, and priorities should reflect, support, and honor the communities who have been most deeply impacted by systemic racism.”

Sams said he joined the council at Brown’s request, explaining that his relationship with Brown extends back to her time as a lawmaker representing Portland in the Oregon Legislature.

Sams used to work in Portland for nonprofits like the Columbia Slough Watershed Council and the Community Energy Project, and when Brown wanted to work on issues related to racial or environmental justice, the pair collaborated.

Decades later, Sams said he wants to help the council in its mission to “dismantle racism.”

Sams said he wants to help the state continue to recognize tribal sovereignty, but he also is interested in addressing other issues in the group.

He said he isn’t supportive of activists’ calls to “defund the police” but he is interested in “right-funding the police.” He added that funding for mental health services has deteriorated since the 1980s as police have found themselves being called out to deal with more social and mental health issues.

Sams has also spent time talking about systemic racism closer to home, having recently spoken with Umatilla County Commissioner Bill Elfering about the topic after the commissioner made comments in June that he didn’t think it existed in Umatilla County.

Sams said Elfering was “open” to the ideas he was trying to discuss with him.

“It probably gave me pause to think about how other people maybe react to the same things I do with a different set of eyes,” Elfering said of the discussion with Sams. “That we don’t all approach the same situation exactly the same way. And it can be productive and helpful to keep that in mind.”

Following discussions with other community members about systemic racism and reading materials submitted by a variety of local groups committed to racial justice and equity, Elfering voted along with the other county commissioners in adopting an order titled “Stance Against Racism, Discrimination and Social Injustices in Umatilla County” on Aug. 5.

The resolution included a declaration that the commissioners believe that racism exists locally, respect peaceful protesting and recognize the importance of contributions by people of color.

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East Oregonian reporter Alex Castle contributed to this report.