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This is Proposal 005-16: Recall of Co-ChairPlease read the proposal and keep comments on the topic of the proposal only. Please suggest any amendments or additions for discussion.Designate your vote by using the following terms: AGREE, DISAGREE, or STAND ASIDE. Per Section 5.9 of the GPCO Bylaws, "If any officer or national representative is found to be in contempt of the goals of the Green Party of Colorado, recall proceedings shall be invoked. A three fourths majority of voting members present at a state meeting and/or the Council is required to achieve the recall of an officer.”There are currently nine ( 9 ) active voting chapters in the Green Party of Colorado. A vote of at least 75% of votes cast and at least one response from five ( 5 ) chapters. Voting will be open for one week and will end on October 4th, 2016.Active ChaptersJeffersonAdamsArapahoe CountyDenverDouglasGreater BoulderPikes PeakPoudre ValleyMesaThank You,Brittany Hoover, Council Facillitator1. Basic Info:Date proposed: September 27, 2016Name of the sponsor(s): Poudre Valley Green Party, Arapahoe Green Party2. Title: Declaration of Co-Chair Position Vacancy3. Text of the actual proposal:4. Background: This proposal would recall Bill Bartlett from his position as co-chair of the Green Party of Colorado. The sponsoring local chapters have directly experienced and witnessed significant negative interactions with Bill Bartlett, that are inconsistent with several of the 10 Key Values and with our bylaws. Some examples include:Bill’s view of racism is inconsistent with the 8th Key Value (Respect for Diversity). He holds a well-publicized belief in “reverse racism,” has expressed more than once that dialogue about racism equates to “anti-white racism,” and has exhibited considerable impatience, disdain, gaslighting and silencing when discussing racism with people of color and their allies. He has shown himself incapable of promoting “the development of respectful relationships across these lines,” by respecting the life experience of people of color or as contemplated in the 8th Key Value.Bill’s recent interactions with female rank-and-file Greens are inconsistent with the 7th Key Value (Feminism and Gender Equity). Both co-chairs and the secretary were recently sent an email that described an account of sexism that Bill exhibited online (see Example 1, References, below). Further, after the encounter, Bill posted on his own Facebook wall an account that was wholly demeaning to women (see Example 2 in References).As co-chair, Bill has failed to uphold the ideals of the 1st Key Value (Grassroots Democracy) by attempting to hurry a proposal on a particular potentially divisive issue on Amendment 69 without having followed a legitimate consensus-seeking process and without understanding that some locals were not in agreement. This lack of understanding results from Bill’s absence in the dialog and work of the party. He refused to accept a substitute statement that would project a public display of unity in favor of universal health care and respect for dissenting opinions and instead has taken to social media to attack the Green Party of Colorado itself.Bill has failed to exhibit the basic leadership requirements of the co-chair position as described in the bylaws, since at least 2013 (see Example 3). Bill has rendered no assistance when requested to help plan and conduct state meetings. Further, Bill has not offered assistance in any events of the state party, including the recent presidential candidate visits or in the formation of any new local chapter during his entire tenure as co-chair. He has never attended a meeting of the Poudre Valley Green Party, nor assisted in any of its work, while simultaneously declaring it his local. Additionally, since the time that a Facebook page was created for the Platte Valley Greens on March 28 2013, presumably his home local, no proposal for recognition has been presented to the state council.Finally, Bill has committed a grave offense against the 4th Key Value (Non-Violence) by physically threatening the female co-chair after becoming visibly intoxicated at the People’s Fair in June 2016, an outreach event the state party paid a sizeable sum to participate in.5. Justification/Goals: Our U.S. Senate candidate was excluded from recent multi-party candidate debates because the Green Party of Colorado’s voter registration numbers were too low. Even with the robust growth in registrations shown since 2015, it is reasonable to assume a tapering off after the November 2016 election. At that point, a focused, robust campaign to register new voters will become necessary so that we can properly support future candidates. This work cannot be done without leadership that supports the work of the local chapters by providing resources, guidance and strategies. Our growth as a party is severely hampered because one co-chair is shouldering the burden without any assistance from the other co-chair, and much of those responsibilities are currently being borne by local co-chairs and others.6. Pros and Cons: ProsThe division of work of the co-chairs can be equitably shared, so that the party can grow with sufficient support.A safe environment for people of color and women within our party can be achieved, and trust can be rebuilt, so that the party’s growth goals can be met.ConsThe position of co-chair may be left vacant for an excessive amount of time, thereby perpetuating an already imbalanced division of work between co-chairs.7. Alternatives to the proposal: Take no action.8. References:https://drive.google.com/drive/folders/0B-sKCIke8emqU1pxX1lwMUd4b3M?usp=sharingLetter from registered Green Danika Carter:I would like to share some concerns I have about our Co-Chair, Bill Bartlett and his behavior that is unbecoming of a state Co-Chair and creates a hostile environment for women.In a discussion on the GPUS Facebook group there was a discussion happening about sexism in the Presidential election. I was on the receiving end of some very sexist comments and insults from a male Green from California. Bill joined the conversation and rather than making it clear that sexism and attacks upon women bringing up the issue have no place in our party, he actually defended the man making sexist comments, added to the insults and actually accused me of being sexist for bringing up the issue of sexism in the election and defending myself against this man from California. Bill’s comments were highly offensive and abusive. His comments were the kind that one would expect to see in a conservative Men’s Rights Activist group, not a Green Party group. I expect my Green Party leadership to create a safe environment for women and other marginalized communities to bring up issues of concern relevant to our life experience. Not to participate in derailing those conversations, defending men attacking women for bringing up the issue and insulting them.Luckily, I have been a Green for 16 years. I have been staff for the Green Party of California before moving to Colorado. However, if I were new to the party and saw this conversation, I would leave it. Immediately. I would not think that this is a party that supports women as equal participants who deserve respect. I would not think this was a group that supports feminism.It's bad enough to see men who are members of the Green Party behave in such a misogynistic way, but it is simply unacceptable for a member of party leadership to contribute to a hostile environment for women. And sadly, this is not the first time I have seen Bill behave in this way. In fact, even after the Facebook group admins deleted the conversation, he continued the insults and misogyny on his own personal page. I have screenshots should you need them.Given that Bill has a history of misogynistic behavior and disrespect of women, and does so in a public forum I believe it is time for some sort of action against him. I don’t know what party rules allow for, but this cannot continue if our party is going to continue to grow, and continue to be a safe place for women and other marginalized communities. If this is how he treats women he has absolutely no business being in a leadership position.look forward to hearing from you. Thank you,~ Danika Carter
BTW, the text and title of the proposal (items 2. and 3.) are mis-leading. They may give the false impression that the co-chair position has been vacated.This is a recall attempt per bylaws section 5.9 which is only allowed "If any officer or national representative is found to be in contempt of the goals of the Green Party of Colorado."Michael HaugheyJefferson County Green Party
DISAGREE ADAMANTLYI had intended to post part of the following, but had trouble getting it on line. Please note that Karen is speaking about Andrea.(This sentence was created with the first posting). I am at work with a few minutes before the first class and it is not right that over night there are allocations of impropriety and a threat for one long respected Co-Chair should be taken from his position by three people known to be in alignment on an issue most of the rest of the whole state of Colorado Green Party knew nothing about until it is posted here without going through the proper channels of discussing it with the one you have an offense with, posting on the discussion board and finally submitting it to Brittany.One accusation is of sexism, because of the words amounting to "girls." Well certainly there are members of the accusing group who have used a much worse word to me and I believe he would admit to it, but I would not recommend he be stricken from office for it; not even though he is recommending someone else be stricken from office for less than the obscene word. Rather privately reminded that the members of the Green Party are trying to be professional and respectful.Another accusation was of being racist because of an error he made about understanding for the most part racism is an issue that incorporate an understanding of laws for decades, unless one is calling direct names, which then should be taken with a serious discussion, including such name calling as white supremacy. "The belief that all members of each race posses characteristics or abilities specific to that race, especially to distinguish it as inferior or superior to another race (Wikipedia)." It does not mean that we are not to question what different people or different ethnicity or genders say and do; that would be to forfeit equal rights. Every large group has people we agree with or believe are doing right and groups that have the opposite views as ourselves. Our goal is to come to a peaceful understanding and mutual respect; especially those who we are working with in the Green Party or other organizations. As for Grassroots democracy an “in person” meeting should have been called, maybe 4 months ago with all members long before a proposal for Bill to leave his office. As for the most serious accusation of him threatening you, that is your word with your husband against Bill’s due to having no other proof. I have trouble believing Bill would threaten you period, but it also would not make since with your husband at the fair. As I am now examining and analyzing your and Bill’s characters and references, I find in favor of Bill. First because I spend quite a bit of time with him through the years in the Green Party & when I ran for office as the U.S. House in District 2.But I add two more for now. This woman talked to me about Andrea’s rude behavior before any of the issues with Bill came up and I excused it away thinking we needed to focus on the elections and that the problem would pass; which obviously it has not. September 11, 2016Good Morning, My friends and I have made phone calls, made posters, and helped at every Denver event. We’ve been to town halls and gatherings at restaurants and bars. We spent hours at a vigil outside a federal prison; we went to see Jill twice. We went to Ajamu’s town hall. There has been no support from local party officials for persons wishing to canvass, hold small events or even obtain materials for Jill Stein. People are making up their own campaign materials using their own printers because there is nothing available from the party. We and many others have been extremely active in supporting Arn Menconi and Jill Stein at every single event in the Denver metro area since we chose to DemExit. An materials order finally came to my home on Friday and my daughter and I spent over 15 hours during the past two days dividing them into packets, creating door hangers by attaching rubber bands or stapling them so they could easily be distributed. We are truly interested in being part of the Green Party because the party values so closely align with our own. We were fortunate to be able to meet Jill and feel strongly about her platform. She is our best hope, and is the only candidate who speaks truth to power. I am very concerned because the Co-Chair of the Green Party, Andrea Mérida Cuéllar has been posting extremely insulting and inflammatory rhetoric regarding Bernie supporters who chose to move to the Green Party. When my daughter asked for clarification, Andrea and her friends flamed her. Every dissenting opinion has been shot down because Andrea deletes them. She and her friends have spent over 30 hours attacking the integrity and dedication of Bernie supporters. My daughter and I are currently the only ones distributing campaign materials to the local Greens. Many frustrated people who want to help Jill’s campaign are met with silence when they reach out to leadership here. How can the Green Party EVER powerful enough to make the changes in American politics that we need, if their elitist attitudes refuse to allow others to participate. On Sept. 9, 2016 at 5:53, Andrea Mérida Cuéllar wrote: ‘I am absolutely convinced that for the most part, the former Sanders supporter is not our target for recruitment into the Green Party. I just tabled at a "progressive" event in Albuquerque for the Green Party of New Mexico, and the people who were still waffling over whether to be a Green were NOT the two groups of working-class Latinas who are fighting neoliberal assaults on the community, with whom I had good, honest conversations. I qualify this by saying there is a difference between voting for Jill and becoming a registered Green Party member (where allowed). There are plenty of good people of good conscience who will be voting for Jill but at the end of the day are going to still "change the Democratic Party from within." All power to them, seriously. Our party, however, must be built with the working class, for whom the stakes are higher and the damage from capitalism is imminent. It must be from the frontline communities who are the first to suffer environmental racism, police brutality, poverty and homelessness. For others, being a Green is an academic exercise. For the rest of us, it's life or death. Let's be clear about the difference between simply voting for Jill and becoming a Green. There is a difference.’ Andrea Mérida Cuéllar is very vocal about her elevated status in the Green Party. Does this woman speak for the Party? She makes assumptions about our motivations and class, questions our ethics and insults us. Her comments about race and gender identification in the feed are disturbing for a Party that claims to be inclusive. IS this how the Green Party really feels about bringing other people into the party? Are all our efforts and dedication worthless to the Green Party if we’re white, hetero and working class?After 38 years as a Dem, I left the party; it wasn’t a hard decision after seeing their abuse and corruption first hand. I hoped to find a place with the Green Party but the leadership here in Colorado is so dysfunctional that it will be difficult to stay. Please note the screen shots from Andrea Mérida Cuéllar’s Facebook page below, as they are most disturbing coming from a National Co-chair. Hello,It was brought to my attention that Bill Bartlett is being asked to step down or face a recall vote based on something he said on Facebook. I do not know what that something is so I don't know personally what is true about the situation. I do however know that I have had reported to me from volunteers serious greivances regarding things Andrea Merida Cuellar our other Co Chair has said. Many people feel that she should be recalled from her role as state co chair because of her behavior including things she has said on Facebook. So while trying to keep any of my own experiences regarding Andrea out of this, I cannot sit by and not interject the information passed on to me by volunteers that I had passed on at their request to Jill's national campaign a couple of weeks ago. I don't know all of the co chairs but you can feel free to share this with all of them. If we are going to take actions against our co chairs for things they have said on Facebook, in person, etc., we need to be evenhanded about it and be clear about what consistutes a violation of the party's principles. I am forwarding two documents. One is the letter and facebook screenshots sent to me by Karen Kestrel that she requested I send to Jill's national campaign. I did nothing with this except exactly what she asked me to do. She has given her permission to have this shared among Green Party leaders/members. The second will come separately and is from Elizabeth Thornton who has expressed issues in the past that were of concern to me and she doesn't share much of her unpleasant direct experiences but her opinion after having had them. She heard about this situation with Bill and wanted to contribute her feelings, she apparently does know the issue at hand regarding him. You are invited to call Karen or Lizzie with any questions you have.I feel it is important for the party to take the entire situation together and look at what is in the best interest of the party and its members. It brings me no joy to share this but I feel a responsibility to do so under the circumstances as a volunteer leader and new member of the party. I am leaving much out of this where I am personally concerned and where Arn is concerned, as his campaign manager, because I don't think it is necessary in order to have a conversation about these matters. Lauren BrillanteFrom: Vivienne Kestrel
Date: September 11, 2016 at 7:04:26 AM MDTTo: arn@arnmenconi.comSubject: How the Green Party National Co-Chair feels about newcomers.Good Morning,I am very concerned because the National Co-Chair of the Green Party, Andrea Mérida Cuéllar has been posting extremely insulting and inflammatory rhetoric regarding Bernie supporters who chose to move to the Green Party. When my daughter asked for clarification, Andrea and her friends flamed her. Every dissenting opinion has been deleted by Andrea after flaming, denigrating and insulting them. She and her friends have spent over 30 hours attacking the integrity and dedication of Bernie supporters. My daughter and I are currently the only ones distributing campaign materials to the local Greens. Many frustrated people who want to help Jill’s campaign are met with silence when they reach out to leadership here. How can the Green Party EVER be powerful enough to make the changes in American politics that we need, when a leader's elitist, racist and sexist attitudes prevent others from participating. Andrea has not done anything to help Jill win and indeed after the Ajamu town hall, she said she wasn't sure about Jill. In person she is barely civil to anyone except her inner circle. She won't give out materials and hoards them. Then she came out with this: On Sept. 9, 2016 at 5:53, Andrea Mérida Cuéllar wrote: ‘I am absolutely convinced that for the most part, the former Sanders supporter is not our target for recruitment into the Green Party. I just tabled at a "progressive" event in Albuquerque for the Green Party of New Mexico, and the people who were still waffling over whether to be a Green were NOT the two groups of working-class Latinas who are fighting neoliberal assaults on the community, with whom I had good, honest conversations. I qualify this by saying there is a difference between voting for Jill and becoming a registered Green Party member (where allowed). There are plenty of good people of good conscience who will be voting for Jill but at the end of the day are going to still "change the Democratic Party from within." All power to them, seriously. Our party, however, must be built with the working class, for whom the stakes are higher and the damage from capitalism is imminent. It must be from the frontline communities who are the first to suffer environmental racism, police brutality, poverty and homelessness. For others, being a Green is an academic exercise. For the rest of us, it's life or death. Let's be clear about the difference between simply voting for Jill and becoming a Green. There is a difference.’ Andrea Mérida Cuéllar is very vocal about her elevated status in the Green Party. Does this woman speak for the Party? She makes assumptions about our motivations and class, questions our ethics and insults us. Her comments about race and gender identification in the post and comments are disturbing for a Party that claims to be inclusive. IS this how the Green Party really feels about bringing other people into the party? Are all our efforts and dedication worthless to the Green Party? Are only 'dark trans young people' welcome? After 38 years as a Dem, I left the party; I hoped to find a place with the Green Party but the leadership here in Colorado is so dysfunctional that it will be difficult to stay. Please note the screen shots from Andrea Mérida Cuéllar’s facebook page on the attached document, they are the most important piece of this problem.Thank you,Karen Kestrel720-935-6684-- Lauren BrillanteCampaign Manager, Arn Menconi For U.S. Senate Bob,The screen shots did not copy, but I can get them again. Kevin worked very hard on the statement he presented on the forum. He invited Tom, Carolyn, our GBGP Co Chair who is also a woman who has spent many years with the Rocky Mtn Peace and Justice Center, and myself to discuss the statement before creating and submitting it. He wanted to try and find some peace between the two CO Chairs, Andrea & Bill, so that we could not do this wrongful accusation to Bill and go back to working on the campaigns at hand. However Our Greater Boulder Green Party statement has turned into a side statement with no real teeth in it; thus Kevin's Block becomes perhaps a push for a vote and Andrea has already begun working toward this end before the proposal.I would never have brought any of these things to this forum had I not thought that Bill Bartlett is being wrongly and unjustly accused. AgreeIn reference to the emergency council meeting on 9/22/2016 (audio linked here https://drive.google.com/open?id=0Bzteq2tfIdXvSnV4NmVSOGI3LVE ), I would just like to state for the record that within 15 minutes of the opening of this meeting, every single person that has access to this recording or was sitting on the call has personally witnessed the behavior that is the source of this complaint. Andrea was asked by the members of the council to give her account of the situation at the People's Fair. As Andrea began speaking she was interrupted and shouted down by Bill within seconds. She calmly asked if she could finish, and was interrupted and shouted down again within seconds. She responded that she understands that situation is stressful and that she would be willing to tell this story off line to any one interested. At this point, the council members present stated that they would like to hear Andrea's story uninterrupted on this call so that it would be part of the record. Andrea again began recounting her experience and was immediately interrupted and shouted down again by Bill. After being unable to get more than 30 seconds into her testimony, Andrea then repeated that she was going to leave the call, and again extended the offer to tell this story to anyone who is interested in hearing it. She then left the call. Bill's behavior in this instance is unacceptable, and clearly illustrates the need for this level of intervention. Bill does not get to decide how Andrea's account of these events is framed. Additionally, This council has no right to determine the timeline for the redress of Andrea's grievance. Over the next hour and 30 or so minutes, Bill was given several minutes to refute Andrea's testimony that was never formally heard by this council. During that conversation there were many comments (by Bill and other council members) about Andrea's character and her behavior, and many excuses and justifications made for Bill's behavior. There were repeated statements that Andrea has been less than admirable in her interactions with former Bernie supporters. I refute that statement by reminding everyone in this council that Andrea has facilitated and supported the creation of two new chapters made up of primarily former Bernie Supporters in this state in the last 3 months, and there are 4 more forming as this conversation is happening. There was also some criticism regarding the fact that we have candidates in the field and that we should not be fighting each other right now. I do not need to remind anyone that at the end of August, Dr. Jill Stein came to Colorado and we had 4 well attended, very successful events that brought a lot of attention to our candidates. Andrea played an unrivaled role in organizing and executing those events. With all of that out of the way, I would like to remind everyone that this discussion is not about Andrea. If you feel that this party is suffering under her leadership I would invite you to continue that conversation outside of this discussion. This discussion is about how this party is suffering under Bill's leadership. There is overwhelming evidence (shared in the google drive) to support the claims made in this proposal. The first example is a formal complaint by a female member of our State Party stating that Bill's conduct creates an unsafe space for women. His response to the post in question was to call her a "girl" and then a "sexist" on his own timeline. The reality is, women cannot be sexist against men because they are oppressed by patriarchy. Fighting oppression does not make a person guilty of the same oppression. Bill even stated in the emergency council meeting that he had clashed with Danika multiple times in the past, which was corroborated by Danika in her official complaint. I would like to address a few things that were stated in the meeting on 9/22. Bill said in no uncertain terms that he had not heard Andrea's story. That statement is absolutely false. On July 1st Bill and Andrea engaged in a conversation about this event over Facebook messenger. The screen shots are shared in the google drive link provided in the proposal (also linked here: https://drive.google.com/drive/u/0/folders/0B-sKCIke8emqU1pxX1lwMUd4b3M). They are named "July 1-1.png, July 1-2.png, July 1-3.png, July 1-4.png, July 1-5.png, July 1-6.png, July 1-7.png, July 1-8.png".Next, we were accused of spying on Bill. I believe that interpretation is inaccurate. Bill and I are friends on Facebook and quite often interact with each other's posts in various ways. We have even disagreed on some pretty fundamental issues from time to time. One of those disagreements is cited as source material for this proposal. Calling this spying does one of two things: it either points to a misunderstanding of social media functionality, or it is a word that was specifically chosen to paint Bill as the victim in this scenario. Having a debate on Facebook, even on your personal timeline, is visible to everyone that you are connected to and anyone they can share it with or tag into the conversation. The reach of social media is unprecedented in our history, and the amount of damage that can be done to our party by statements made on social media is immeasurable.In addition, Bill stated that he had not been confronted about this behavior and that this recall attempt was unexpected. The truth is, Bill has been challenged on these beliefs many times by non-greens, greens, state party members, even including Sean Friend and myself (cited in the screenshots). I understand that our 10 KV are not intended to to be a mandate for individual behavior. However, if we can't hold our officers accountable to our values, how can we expect to implement them as a matter of public policy.The question in this proposal is not whether or not Bill harbors views that are unacceptable to me. The question is, do these views held by an officer in our state party conflict with our values in a way that makes him unfit to hold the title of State Co-Chair of the Green Party of Colorado.
Agree. It's disturbing to me that this has started to be framed as a dispute between Andrea and Bill. Only one of the items on the proposal relates to her at all, and there are enough other items to demonstrate the necessity of recall. I and others involved in drafting this proposal have challenged Bill around his statements and actions multiple times, and I have personally tried to offer him resources on racism with no response. The impracticality of calling an in person meeting right now seems self evident for folks all over the state weeks before an election. There have been accusations of trying to rush this proposal through. I have already expressed my willingness to extend the discussion period and consider amendments to the proposal. The only reason we are currently on such a short time line for voting on this proposal is the Block presented in Agreement Seeking. I was also not aware that I was breaking protocol by posting a proposal myself, as three out of the previous six proposals posted in Agreement Seeking have not been posted by the Council Facilitator. My understanding was that elected officers of the party would be allowed to post a proposal for discussion. I'd like to ask the other members of the council who have leveled accusations of impropriety in relation to this proposal to explain what they think we should do with the multiple accusations that have been brought by multiple registered Greens in this state against Bill. As a white cis man who is trying to resist oppression, I am trying to make this party a safe place for marginalized people. I believe that the first and most basic step in doing that is to believe women who accuse a white man in a position of power of sexism and threats of violence. If that makes me an anti-male sexist, I will wear that label as a badge of honor. I would like to close by pointing out that attacks on Andrea's character and behavior are frankly irrelevant to this proposal, as she is not the subject of recall. They are also highly inappropriate, as she did not bring this proposal or ask it to be brought. I would like to request that the council keep comments on the topics covered in the proposal and refrain from personal attacks.
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