MassEquality: Let Them Eat Cake !

Boston Globe Reports That MassEquality Has Spent Over $ 100,000 Per Month Since June Without Any Clear Plan For Its Future

What could you do with $100,000 let alone $100,000 a month?  What could a non-profit do with that money?  Or the many Vulnerable Freshman Legislators who switched their vote on same-sex marriage and are seeking re-election?  Lisa Wangsness reported in the Boston Globe that while MassEquality is waiting "to discover what its mission is" that it costs the LGBT Community over $ 100,000 A MONTH.  (Half a Million Dollars Since June)

And I do mean that this is costing the LGBT Community.  Money from donors does have limits, it comes with demands, and often with loyalties.  I wonder if MassEquality will tell us how many large donors have been asked to contribute only to MassEquality at the expense of other LGBT organizations?  And while we are at it, we need to demand to know where this community money is going.  What are the rents, the salaries including Marc Solomon's, and we need to ask how much money the untouchable, insider consultants are being paid.  These are the media consultants and advertising consultants and website gurus albeit many from within the LGBT "connected" community. **(see "Clarification" below)

All of us who work on LGBT Equality are greatly offended to find that this $ 100,000 burn rate has occured since June while MassEquality is trying to "find itself", plan its big party, reach out to communities of color in such a way that one Globe reporter told me sounds like "Missionary Work," and re-do its website.  The Lobby Group which had such great success in raising money and winning legislative campaigns for the sole purpose of marriage equality needs to stop thinking about what is best for MassEquality and start thinking about what is best for the Massachusetts LGBT Community. 

We all remember those MassEquality pleas for money during the ConCons including this May 6, 2006 one which read, " $10,000 Down, but $ 190,000 to go.  The Constitutional Convention meets in just 8 days to consider a terrible new anti-gay Amendment.  The Right may well win the 50 votes they need - because we haven't raised enough money to fight them."   Ma$$Equality alright. 

Unfortunately, I was forwarded an email that Marc Solomon, MassEquality's Campaign Director had sent to David Wilson, it's Board Chair, which for me, sheds more than enough light on what is going on behind closed doors.  Marc seems more concerned with punishing those who he finds "disloyal" than correcting the situation of MassEquality's "cash suck" -- a situation for which he is more than a little responsible. 

________________________________________________________________________

From: Marc Solomon <MarcSolomon@MassEquality.org>
To: David Wilson <dwilson799@comcast.net>
Cc: Board <Board@MassEquality.org>
Sent: Sun, 28 Oct 2007 10:12 pm
Subject: Outrageous


Dear David:

Enough is enough. On Friday, I get a call from Lisa Wangsness, a
Boston Globe State House reporter. Here’s what she asks me. Is it
true that MassEquality has been spending $100,000 a month since the Con
Con? Why are you taking in less than you are spending? Is it true
your contributions are down a lot? Why haven’t you laid off more
staff? Why aren’t you conserving your money for the elections?

This is pure b.s. and I am furious. Someone (or someones) are trying
to take this organization down in the press by leaking sensitive and
proprietary financial information, information available only to board
members. Whomever is doing this needs to resign or be removed from the
board immediately. I checked with our MassEquality attorney, told her
what is going on, and she confirmed that this is a blatant violation of
a board member’s legal responsibility to the organization. That it is
illegal to leak this kind of information. That it abrogates “the duty
of care” and “the duty of loyalty” which are the basic legal
requirements of any board member to any organization.

This board must conduct an investigation and either secure the
resignation or file a cause of action against whomever is responsible.
This comes on the heels of Arline Isaacson’s on the record comments to
State House News, where she makes it look like she is speaking for the
organization and advances a one-staff-person MassEquality for the
future (for those who find this hard to believe, I’ve copied it
below). I have already had lawmakers call me wondering what the hell
is going on.

David, you know I’ve kept it together for two years. I have let way
too many things go by. But this is just outrageous. The board needs
to do something now.

Marc
___________________________________________________________________

We do all need to take a step back and think for ourselves what is really going on here.  Who is profitting, who is truly concerned with the LGBT Community, who is more concerned with his/her job or celebrity?  And what organizations have been doing the work for years before marriage equality was even a dream...  Read the Boston Globe article again and please think.  To question the players from within MassEquality is not somehow "disloyal" to the LGBT Community nor is it belittling to its Coalition Members or the work that we have ALL done in the successful fight for Equality here in Massachusetts.

Look, there is no doubt or reservation in anyone's mind that MassEquality should and will be around at least until the 2008 Elections--it has to be in order to support those legislators who supported marriage equality.  But as for what it should be doing if we allow it to become the New MassEquality Corporation, the jury is still out...

There is one thing for sure, however, and I think that a quote in the Globe from one of MassEquality's stakeholders says it best, "An organization shouldn't look for a mission to continue its existence."

Tom Lang, Director Know ThyNeighbor
________________________________________________________________________
Clarification (posted Nov.1st 4:30 EST)

I received an email from Ruthie BenDor, MassEquality's Web Designer in reference to my post asking to know the money MEQ paid to "the untouchable insider consultants" and that my post does in fact read that "website gurus" are part of this.  Ms. BenDor informed me that she is employed by MassEquality on an hourly basis, she is not one of the "insider consultants" and that my reference to "gurus" should be singular as she is the only web designer.  Also, Ms. BenDor provided the new website for MassEquality as "pro bono" and would like to make it perfectly clear, as she wrote in her email to me, "the redesign was NOT a major expense to MassEquality and has NOT significantly contributed to the $100,000/month burn rate."

Comments

[Grammar Joe]

Regarding the title of this post (MassEquality: "Let Them Eat Cake"):

If you're using the "" as actual quotation marks, then unless someone who officially represents MassEquality actually said "Let Them Eat Cake", the title of this post is misleading.

If you're using the "" not as actual quotation marks, but as scare quotes, then you're using them incorrectly. A correct use would be to put them around an ACTUAL quote by a representative of MassEquality that you might find sufficiently obnoxious, enraging, or otherwise contemptible as to make you want to scorn it.

Here's an example of proper usage of scare quotes, courtesy of Wikipedia:

Conservative: Blah blah blah relief from crippling taxes!
Liberal, the next day: We've heard about these conservatives and their tax "relief".

Cheers!

[sean]

What's going on here is Know Thy Neighbor being labeled as extreme and a liability to Mass Equality.

Even your own people think you are out of touch and out of line. Get used to it.

Your intimidation tactics turn people off.

[John]

No, what is happening here is a simple demand for accountability.

[sean]

accountable to whom? The radicals like Tom Lang who can't stand it when someone gets more attention than him?

[John]

Maybe you should just reread the article. Tom is quite clear.

[ryan charisma]

Paul (aka Sean)

You're a complete idiot.

[sean]

Tom Lang is trying to take MassEquality down in the press by leaking information about expenses.

These are the "details" that Hosty and Lang said would be forthcoming.

[John]

sean, you have no fucking idea what you are talking about.

[sean]

Tom Lang

"I will be once and for all be exposing everything that I and
KnowThyNeighbor went through at the hands of MassEquality. Things
that I would never have told our community while we were in the
marriage equality fight for fear of creating a great division. My
organization, its straight allies and all that KnowThyNeighbor did at
great personal expense were treated so poorly "by our own" (ie
MassEquality) and it is time to hear our side. And trust me, if the
wounds are to heal, if they can, we need to put it all the table.
KnowThyNeighbor is one of many."

John Hosty -

"Once Tom Lang Puts forward all he will, you'll understand why."

[Tom Lang]

Sean,

What KTN, Aaron and I went through is information that the LGBT community needs to know, however, this has nothing to do with the half million MEQ spent since the ConCon. And no, I did not "leak" it--as a matter of fact, figures close to that have been circulating long before the Globe did its story--so I really don't think it was "a leak."

[John Howard]

Tom, if you want to talk about something else, just let me know. ;-)

[Richard W. Lewis, Sr.]

"Divide and Conquer" has always proven to be a successful military strategy.

It might be a good idea to have all GLBT organizations leadership get together for a tactical discussion!

[Steve Kyle]

I have been active in the gay community, on and off, for 31 years. This nonsense is a perfect example of what is wrong with the gay community. We are better at bitching and backstabbing than we are at banding together to get something done. In the end, it is not about who is right or wrong, it is about the problems we ALL share and must take blame for -- an inability to put our differences aside, to "agree to disagree" on some things, and focus on our main goal. I've watched this scenario play out for 31 years; the names change but the it's the same old blame game. What a shame for all of us.

[Tom Lang]

Steve Kyle,

Massachusetts "banded together" to protect our marriage rights after the Goodridge Decision four years ago and we did amazing things. Yes, "we" -- all of us-- not just MassEquality, but everyone from the Governor and the triumverate, the families, the average citizens never before politically active, the various smaller groups, the leges, the campaigns that won and the ones that lost but had the integrity to run on equality, the bloggers, the newly "enlightened" family members, the members of press that finally "got it," some churches, our Caucus which had been working for decades, the couples, the burnout of our oppositions message and the individuals and groups that made sure that the bigots were exposed for what they were, etc etc etc etc etc etc.

But unfortunately, it is the group that has the most amount of money who will try to claim that victory for itself. And that is TRULY "a shame for us all"--gay and straight. History will produce its truth about what really happened in Massachusetts, hopefully sooner than later.

[icarus]

I would just like to, again, point out that Massachusetts still does not have a non-discrimination law that protects transgender people. That's an embarrassment.

The Massachusetts Transgender Political Coalition, a volunteer-run, grassroots organization, has been lobbying for HR 1722, the bill that would add "gender identity" to existing hate crimes and non-discrimination laws. They have almost no money (over the summer, they were $500 in the red).

If you want to support the most vulnerable members of the LGBT community, donate to MTPC:

http://www.masstpc.org/about/donate.shtml

If you can't donate, then volunteer, help out, spread the word.

It's time to support trans and gender-non-conforming people in our state, and if MassEquality is taking a while to get on board, then we need to be out there right now.

Please, take a few minutes and a few dollars, and make a difference.

[Stephen Coady]

re: tom lang's comments on mass equality:

great. know thy neighbor competing with and disparaging mass eq only months after a historic victory. why don't we just have a debate hosted by mass resistance.

tom lang - you should pack up your little petition website (and what else is it?) and leave politics to people who do the footwork like mass eq. as they proved themselves readily.

what exactly did you and know thy neighbor do for us in quincy? many of us put a lot of effort into this and mass eq was present - you most certainly were not. what is your purpose now anyway? that tired old petition can be archived and you can shut off the lights and go home. it is now a historic document and not one that should be dragged out argumentum ad nauseam. people can change or not.

besides, people have a right to sign any friggin thing they want. some have hateful intentions but most are fear based people experiencing severe disonnance - this is not their world anymore and they are trying to hold back change. fear of decline, diapers and death i 'spose.

this stinks of the usual male ego - gay or otherwise - who has to be top dog by pissing on others. it is sadly a never ending reality in the non-profit world where groups who should be working together tear each other apart.

well screw you. mass equality was the force behind change in marriage rights here - you simply were the keeper of the petition and a half-assed website. big shit.

tom koch as mayor in a scratch ticket town isn't going to affect gay marriage rights one iota.

in that regard - he is much like you. move on.

Stephen Coady
Quincy

[ryan charisma]

And now Stephen, Mass Eq. is taking your money.

hurray!

[Stephen]

Yes they are - and I happily give it and will give more.

Know thy Neighbor got quite a bit from me too though the other states can pick up their costs for that org - oh and every major gay rights organization in the country has received money from too. Many times over.

[Stephen]

Tom/Ryan:

You know what? I have no idea why I ranted like I did in the last posts.

After the marriage fight and then the mayoral loss I guess I am burned out. I reacted strongly I think as I feel like "we" are on the defensive a lot. Also, I was being an a-hole.

Apologies all around.

KTN did a great service and we will see what comes out of Mass Eq. I have confidence in them and as an employee at Harvard - very little confidence in the Globe.