the main issues of the task force was to address diversity in the SAA as well as in the archival profession. From this came the creation of the Task Force on Diversity, chaired by Brenda Banks with members Anne Difffendal, John Fleckner, Susan Fox, Karen Jefferson, Deborah King (Burns), Joan Krizak, and Kathleen Roe. The task force investigated the SAA to see where they supported or weakened diversity, discussing possible solutions to improve or encourage it in the SAA as well as the archival profession. Their final report recommended that the SAA: Develop an organizational position statement that articulates SAA's commitment to becoming a more diverse organization Incorporate diversity into SAA's strategic planning process. Reinforce and expand existing activities within SAA that support diversity. Identify and establish new initiatives that may assist SAA in its efforts to become a more diverse organization. After the Council accepted the report, they approved a statement on diversity that was released on June 13, 1999:The Society of American Archivists is committed to integrating diversity concerns and perspectives into all aspects of the activities and into the fabric of the profession as a whole. SAA is also committed to the goal of a Society membership that reflects the broad diversity of American society. SAA believes that these commitments are essential to the effective pursuit of the archival mission “to ensure the identification, preservation, and use the nation's historical record.Five years later, the SAA Council established a Committee on Diversity in response to complaints that they were moving slowly in implementing the recommendations of the Task Force on Diversity. After much debate, they established a Task Force on Diversity with its first goal to define 'diversity.' They were also asked to investigate "how and to what extent issues of democracy are being addressed by the Society." The Task Force on Diversity submitted its last report in February 1999. In 1996, one of the few articles written on diversity in the archives profession was published. Kathryn M. Neal details the importance of diversity in archives:Expanding the numbers of staff members of color and tapping their potential should (and no doubt would) enhance the overall functions of archives and manuscript repositories. New ideas would likely be stimulated in areas that include, but certainly are not limited to, donor relations (for instance, how to approach and document members of growing communities of color most effectively) and reference/access (determining how