Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich Selects Six for Induction Into 2020 Class of County Human Rights Hall

For Immediate Release: Tuesday, December 22, 2020

Montgomery County Executive Marc Elrich has selected six individuals who will be inducted into the 2020 class of the County Human Rights Hall of Fame. This is the 11th biennial event, which honors individuals who have made great personal sacrifices in contributing to human and civil rights in Montgomery County, either as trailblazers of the past or as current light bearers in the struggle.

The honorees will be recognized for their visionary leadership, outstanding achievements and altruism on the road to eliminating discrimination and advancing human rights. The program will take place virtually at 4: p.m. on Sunday, Dec. 27. Community members are invited to join the ceremonies, which will include the induction of the Class of 2020 and performances from area students in the NAACP Afro-Academic, Cultural, Technological and Scientific Olympics (ACT-SO) and a special tribute to fallen heroes of civil rights.

Watch live on cable: Xfinity 6 HD 996 RCN 6 HD 1056 Fios 30; live streaming to the web: County Cable Montgomery; http://fb.com/countycablemoco and https://www.youtube.com/user/KingmanBGCDC.

The following individuals will be inducted at this year’s ceremony:

Bruce Adams: A lifelong resident of Montgomery County, Bruce Adams has spent most of that time working to create a welcoming Montgomery County for all people especially diverse cultural, ethnic and minority groups.

Bruce served on the Montgomery County Council from 1986 to 1994, including a term as Council President (1991-92). He established and directed the Office of Community Partnerships from 2007 to 2018, and pridefully fulfilled his commitment to help make Montgomery County one of the world’s most welcoming communities.

He launched the County’s Sister Cities program, created an annual World of Montgomery Festival, promoted volunteer community service, reinvigorated the Charles W. Gilchrist Immigrant Resource Center in Wheaton and created advisory groups for ethnic and faith communities during his work at the Office of Community Partnerships.

Adams volunteered on dozens of government advisory boards and commissions at the State and County levels. He received numerous awards for his leadership, public service and volunteerism including the 2020 Hero Against Hunger Award from the Manna Food Center; the 2017 Peacemaker of the Year Award from the Conflict Resolution Council of Montgomery County; the 1998 Washingtonian of the Year by Washingtonian magazine; the 1993 Metropolitan Washington Council of Governments’ Elizabeth and David Scull Metropolitan Public Service Award; and the 1989 Montgomery County Fair Housing Award from the Interagency Fair Housing Coordinating Group.

Marcine D. Goodloe: A lifelong servant to Montgomery County, Ms. Goodloe has dedicated years of leadership as a volunteer and employee. She is the first woman to serve as the president of the Montgomery County Fire and Rescue Association. She served for 15 years, the longest serving president in its history.

She advanced the fire service agenda at the local and state levels in Maryland.  She negotiated many agreements that positively impacted hundreds of volunteers and Montgomery County government during her tenure as president. She improved multiple key policies relating to training, physical standards and drug and alcohol abuse testing.

Goodloe has worked to ensure that children from families in need had access to gifts and toys during the holiday season. She spearheaded toy drives and coordinated special events for underserved children.

Through her  leadership, she helped to eliminate barriers, promote equal opportunities and increased awareness of the opportunities to build a more just community,

Marcus Jones: A 35-year veteran of the Montgomery County Police Department (MCP), Marcus Jones was sworn in as the County’s new police chief on Nov. 8, 2019. Prior to becoming chief, Jones served in numerous leadership roles including MCP acting chief. Other leadership roles included assistant chief of the Investigative Services Bureau; commander of the 3rd District, director of Major Crimes, Drug Enforcement; and captain of the Major Crimes Division, where he oversaw the homicide, robbery, cold case and fugitive sections.

Jones’ ongoing work, service and contributions have positively impacted human and civil rights in Montgomery County. He is a respected leader with strong community ties who works diligently to strengthen the relationship between the MCP and all communities. His strong leadership and commitment are why Montgomery County remains one of the safest places to live and work in the region.

Jones serves on the Governor’s Prescription Drug Monitoring Program board, the Montgomery County Domestic Violence Coordinating Council and the Maryland Violence Intervention and Prevention Advisory Council. 

Jones played a vital role in creation of the MCP department's award-winning Diversity Training program. He is a former chairman of the National Black Police Association and served on the Board of Directors for the National Law Enforcement Memorial Fund. Jones has earned numerous awards including the Ethical Leadership Award; the Montgomery County Police Alumni Association; the Montgomery's Best Diversity Award-Cultural Diversity Committee; the National Association of Counties Award; the MCPD Lead Excellent Award; the Office Of Human Resources Cultural Diversity Committee; the Montgomery Village Foundation Community Award; and the American Legion Police Officer Of The Year - Southern Region (2011).

Jones received the “Montgomery’s Best Award” for directing the Damascus Gardens Drug Market Initiative to eliminate an open-air drug market.

Dr. Michael Lin: Representing the American ideal of the consummate professional, Michael Lin focuses his skills on serving the greater community good. A world-class biomedical scientist, Dr. Lin has used his talents to empower underrepresented communities and help Montgomery County build one of America’s most welcoming communities.

Born in Xiamen, China, he grew up in Taiwan and came to the United States 50 years ago. He received his Ph.D. in biochemistry from the Medical College of Georgia. During his five years of post-doctoral training at Rockefeller University in New York, his work on enzyme chemistry was cited in his mentors’ Nobel Prize lecture. Michael continued his professional career as a biomedical scientist at the National Institutes of Health for the next 35 years.

For more than two decades, Dr. Lin has assumed various leadership roles within the Organization of Chinese Americans (OCA), including National Executive Director and National President. Most recently, Dr. Lin helped secure passage of Congressional resolutions acknowledging the injustice of the 1882 Chinese Exclusion Laws. Dr. Lin helped found the Asian American Political Alliance to encourage the Asian community to participate more fully in all aspects of civic life. He has served as chair of the Maryland Governor’s Commission on Asian Pacific American Affairs and as a member and chair of the Board of Trustees at the Montgomery College.

Michael Lin received the prestigious Roscoe R. Nix Distinguished Community Leadership Award in 2014 for bringing people together and breaking barriers of racial and ethnic differences.

Darryl McSwain: In more than 32 years in law enforcement, Darryl McSwain has remained dedicated to protecting and serving the community.

McSwain served with Montgomery County Police (MCP) for 30 years. His first assignment was as a patrol officer in the 4th District (Wheaton), where he remained for eight years.

He served in many distinct roles with MCP, and in every assignment, he prioritized building trust and fostering respectful relationships with community members, especially groups who feel marginalized.

After retiring from MCP, he was named Park Police chief for the Montgomery County division of  the Maryland-National Capital Park and Planning Commission (M-NCPPC).

One of McSwain’s most notable moments with the MCP occurred during his time leading the Special Operations Division. As its commander, McSwain led the specialized forces, such as K9 units and SWAT teams, and was responsible for critical life safety events. He received national attention for handling the September 2010 incident when a gunman carrying explosives took hostages at the Discovery Communications building in Downtown Silver Spring. Under his supervision of the operation, all three hostages were released unharmed and the gunman was unable to discharge explosives.

Jeffrey Z. Slavin: A philanthropist, community public servant and civil, LGBTQ and women's rights activist, Jeffrey Slavin’s first experience with religious discrimination was when his parents applied for him to attend a private elementary school in Bethesda.  

As a Georgetown law student, he participated in the school's first sex discrimination clinic, where law students fought for those who experienced sex-based discrimination. He was active with the Black Allied Law Students Association, attended rallies at the Supreme Court to protest the Bakke decision and was a plaintiff in the case against the school after it denied official status for an LGBTQ organization on its main campus. 

Early in his career, Slavin was appointed by Washington, D.C., Mayor Marion Barry to the District’s Human Rights Commission, where he eventually served as the vice chair. He was the first man elected to the Women's Campaign Fund Board of Directors and helped recruit women to serve in Federal, State and local offices. He helped in campaigns to advance opportunities for women of color. Slavin served on the board of directors of what is now the national LGBTQ Task Force. 

In 2002, Slavin was elected to the Somerset Town Council for the first of three terms and in 2008 was elected Mayor—the first of seven terms. He served as the first LGBTQ elected town official. During that time, he was elected to Maryland Municipal League (MML) Board of Directors; the Maryland Mayors Association, and Montgomery chapter of the MML. 

Slavin was elected to the Black Democrats of Montgomery County Board of Directors and is currently a member of the Maryland Black Mayors Association. He served as vice chair of the Maryland Democratic Party, the first LGBTQ person to hold the position. He is a lifetime member in the Montgomery County chapter of the NAACP and the National Council of Negro Women and Vice President of the Friends of the Human Rights Commission. He was appointed to the adversary board for Asian-American Lead.

Slavin resigned his lifelong membership at the Woodmont Country Club due to the discriminatory manner in which the club's admissions committee treated President Barack Obama; resigned as treasurer of the Maryland Marriage Association due to the mistreatment of a black female officer; and has worked to address the desecration of the historically Black Moses Cemetery near Somerset.  

More comprehensive biographies will be available on the Office of Human Rights website following the event.

More information on the Office of Human Rights is available on its website.

Release ID: 20-808
Media Contact: Judy Stiles 240-463-2442
Categories: Executive Office