Independent Neighborhood Democrats (IND) has been a club I have been involved with for nearly two years. I have publicized it and petitioned for them. Now, I have only recently gotten around to joining as a paid member and, as endorsement time approached, I pushed harder to get all who read my blogs and who attend meetings I host to join IND and other reform clubs. Some of those I have been pushing agree with me on candidates, some don't. I have urged all of them to join before the deadline to be able to vote in endorsement votes. I have not always agreed with IND, but I have always respected IND and been proud to work with them.

IND has a reputation of standing up to the corrupt Brooklyn machine. That is one reason I have plugged them so avidly. They have been efficient, and honorable compared to many other clubs.

IND has just taken an action that makes me feel betrayed and which makes me wonder what has become of the reform movement in Brooklyn. The executive board of IND, in a contentious move, has disenfranchised nearly 100 new members with the sole intention of manipulating the endorsement process.

I favor certain candidates that are not favorites in IND. Naturally I hope to see their endorsement go the way I want it to. But, I know enough members of IND to know that they will be supporting some candidates who are not my favorites. I was prepared for this and accepted it. What I was not prepared for was a move by the newly elected IND executive board that will screw nearly 100 new, dues paying members. For the record, my wife and I are not being screwed. We are already able to vote. They have not been able to disenfranchise our vote. But many who have heeded my call to join the reform clubs of Brooklyn have now been screwed by the very "reformers" I recommended.

From On NY Turf:

The Independent Neighborhood Democrats executive board has moved to fix the club's endorsement for State Senate Incumbant Candidate Marty Connor and make life very difficult for Anti-Atlantic Yards candidate Chris Owens, before it's members cast a single ballot. Last Thursday, the board voted to disenfranchise 100 new club members, so as to assure that Mr.Conner receives an endorsement, and Chris Owens does not. This development is an ironic and dark twist for the Brooklyn based political club that prides itself on fighting Machine politics and helping marginalized candidates.

In the coming weeks IND members will meet to endorse a candidate for State Senate and a candidate for the hotly contested 11th Congressional seat. A majority of board members were concerned that new members were going to tip the vote for two specific candidates, Ken Diamondstone, running against Marty Connor, and Chris Owens, running for Congress against David Yassky (and 3 other black candidates). Instead of taking their chances, as they have in the past, the board decided to exclude these new members from voting in the upcoming endorsement election.

The board did not want to take a chance that Marty Connor would lose the endorsement vote of his own club. Additionally some board members are hostile to Owens for his opposition to the Atlantic Yards project. The club however does not officially have a position on the development plan.

To ensure the desired results, the board took advantage of the IND By-Law which requires that you be a member of the club for 60 days before you can cast a ballot. The endorsement votes in question were originally scheduled for May 18th. That date was announced at the IND March meeting and on the club's web site. Following the March announcement, the club was flooded with new members. According to the Treasurer of IND, Joseph Ringston, approximately 100 new members signed up between March 16th and March 18th, in time for the endorsement votes. To exclude these new members, the board simply moved up the date of the endorsement votes. The Senate Seat endorsement meeting is now scheduled for April 20th and the Congressional endorsement vote has been moved up by two weeks, to May 4th.

Now, I will be there and will vote on May 4th. But many of those I have been urging to join IND for two years and who didn't join until just before this deadline are screwed. And I feel that all I have told them about IND may be wrong.

I have asked those I know on IND's executive board for an explanation. I know that they did not condone this action, but as members of the executive board, I am hoping they can put a spin on it that will please me and all those who took my word regarding their integrity.

What I will certainly gain from this is a disgust and disdain for Marty Connor. I had not paid much attention to him before and had not formed an opinion as to whether I favored Connor or his rival, Ken Diamondstone. IND has just made up my mind. Marty Connor and IND have made a move that is disrespectful to myself and to democracy. I question Connor's integrity and his dedication to democracy and to the Democratic Party. Connor has convinced me that Ken Diamondstone is the better candidate.

Some of the leadership of IND seems as displeased as I am. Form the same article quoted above:

They were concerned that manipulating the endorsement process after the dates had been announced could give the club a black eye. IND Executive Board Chairman Kenn Lowy was livid about the change in dates, and past club president Devin Cohen, who voted no, noted the board's selective tolerance for packing. After last Thursday's board meeting, Cohen said to Chairman Lowy, "I guess the whole Mark Peters thing never happened", referring to the heated debate within the club last year about Attorney General candidate Mark Peters packing the club. When Lowy asked the board how and why this year was any different from what happened last year, several board members told him that it was no different. Still the board made it's extra-ordinary decision.

Devin Cohen and I don't agree on everything. But one think I know about Devin is that his integrity is impeccable. I am glad that he stood up to the new board, though unsuccessfully. My respect for Devin remains intact. My respect for IND is considerably reduced and I may never again publicize that particular "reform" club.